In Pursuit Of
by Nimbus01
Summary: When what should have been a routine Wonderbolts demonstration goes awry, the fate of Equestria ends up hanging in the balance. It's up to Rainbow Dash, the Mane 6, and a new pony from the Equestrian Defense Force to bring the land to peace once more... if they can just stop arguing.
1. Chapter 1: Flyby Fantasy

_In Pursuit of Perfection_

_A My Little Pony Tale_

_Chapter 1: Flyby Fantasy_

The warm sun rose over the fields and mountains of Equestria, casting its soft glow like a blanket over the land. Inside her home, Rainbow Dash was sleeping restlessly. Today was the day of the Grand Galloping Gala, and as always, her personal heroes, the Thunderbolts, were scheduled to perform.

She turned over and yawned, exhausted. The previous night, she'd been practicing her tricks, in the hopes of finally getting an audition with the famous flying team. She'd practiced her high-speed passes, her flips, and one move she was particularly fond of, the "Super Rainbow Cloudburst." As she yawned, a sudden "whoosh" ripped through the air above the rented house in Canterlot of her friend, Twilight Sparkle, where she was now staying, and Rainbow Dash started awake, gasping. Almost instinctively, and still half-asleep, she rushed to her window and looked out, recognizing the distinct formation of the Thunderbolts flying by overhead. She whinnied with joy and ran outside. Above, they banked left and circled around for another pass. Rainbow Dash's wings began to flap with excitement when she saw them. They were coming back! Slowly they leveled out, at rooftop level, and screamed by again over her house.

"Yeeha!" she yelled as they flew over.

"What's up, Rainbow?"

Rainbow Dash turned around and fell down. Twilight Sparkle, bleary-eyed and obviously still waking up, was standing behind her.

"Oh, hi Twilight!" she grinned, not realizing that her excited wing flapping had lifted her off the ground. She raised a wing to wave, and crashed to the ground in a heap.

"Oh my gosh!" Twilight Sparkle said, running to the scene of the accident, "are you okay?" She nudged the unmoving Rainbow Dash with her hoof, trying to illicit a response. She got nothing.

"Am I okay?!" Rainbow Dash asked suddenly, perking her head up and startling Twilight Sparkle into falling over herself, "I'm more than okay! I'm splendid! I'm walking on the clouds! I'm peachy keen! I-"

"Whoa, slow down," Twilight Sparkle said, standing up and dusting herself off, "what's got you so excited?"

"The Thunderbolts!" Rainbow Dash said, pressing her face right up into Twilight's.

"Oh, right," Twilight said, "I should've known."

"Yes you should have," Rainbow said, galloping circles around her friend, "but since you forgot, I'll remind you."

Twilight tried to force a smile, but it came out more like a grimace. As soon as her friend's back was turned, she rolled her eyes. She had to listen to this speech at least once every year, on the morning of the Grand Galloping Gala. Every year, it seemed, was the same.

"Just like every year, the Thunderbolts are going to perform at the Grand Galloping Gala, and after their show, I'm going to ask them for an audition. With my flying skills, they're sure to say 'yes,' and when they see me fly, they'll ask me to join their team on the spot. Any questions?"

Rainbow was once again hovering in the air, and extremely excited. Twilight's mouth hung open at an angle, and her right eye was twitching. When she was worked up about something, Rainbow's excitement could have that effect on people.

"Hee hee hee! You look funny!" Rainbow looked over just in time to see Pinkie Pie approaching from up the road. She'd seen the expression on Twilight's face, and was currently overcome with an unconquerable fit of giggles. The bouncing, pink pony stopped right in front of Twilight, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Huh?" Twilight asked, still shell-shocked from Rainbow's yearly speech.

"I said you look funny!"

Twilight realized that she was making an extremely strange face, and instantly recovered, grinning.

"Oh yeah, thanks."

"So what's all this hoopla about?" Pinkie asked the two ponies.

"Oh, I'm so glad you asked!" Rainbow said, swooping down and landing right in front of Pinkie, "you see, today, the Thunderbolts are-"

"Yes, yes, yes," Twilight said, "I'm pretty sure she knows."

"Not really," Pinkie said, "go on, Rainbow."

Twilight groaned as she realized she was about to experience "The Speech" again.

"You know what, guys?" she said, "I've got a little more studying to do on a… special recipe, yeah… that I'm bringing to the Gala."

"Well okay, then!" Pinkie said, "I'll just stay here. Have fun!"

Twilight smiled and waved, walking back towards her house. She loved Rainbow Dash as much as everyone else, but she knew how quickly her friend could get swept up into her own little worlds. Now, it was probably best to leave her alone.

…

"Sunshine, this is Nimbus. The sky is clear. No unauthorized ponies in the airspace."

An orange pony with a black mane and tail soared through the air, high above the stadium where the Thunderbolts demonstration was to take place later on. He was wearing a silver helmet with a clear, yellow visor, and his cutie mark was that of a feather.

"Roger, Nimbus. Thank you for your sweep."

"You're welcome, sir," Nimbus said into his built-in microphone, "Nimbus out."

Nimbus began a slow bank over the stadium. Today was going to be a fun day for everyone here, which meant his job was going to be made much more difficult. Large gatherings and aerial demonstrations were the bane of the Equestrain Defense Force, or EDF for short. There were simply too many things that could go wrong. Security had doubled as of late due to reports of dark magic that had apparently been detected along Equestria's borders, and such things were not taken lightly by the EDF. As a result, Nimbus and a detail of two other ponies, had been sent here to ensure security.

As he looked down at the stadium, he felt a pang of longing. Before he'd joined the EDF, he'd been just like every pony down there. He hated to reminisce, but sometimes it felt good to remember the easier times.

He snapped back to his task at hand. He had a Gala to protect, and that was exactly what he was going to do. Suddenly, a shrill alarm sounded in his helmet, and a small blip appeared on his helmet's heads-up display on a map.

"Sunshine, this is Nimbus," the pony said, activating his com and rolling and diving towards the ground, "we have an intruder in the airspace. I say again- we have an intruder!"

…

Rainbow Dash leaped off the ground, headed for the sky. A little practice certainly couldn't hurt, she reasoned, so why not fly around the stadium before the Gala?

As she soared skyward, she turned around and lined up with the stadium seats, ready for her first move: the high-speed, low-altitude pass. She tucked her wings in for speed and headed for her destination, picking up speed as she went. As she went faster, rainbows began to stream from her coat, hence her name, until she appeared as a colorful streak in the sky. She was just about to buzz the stands when something from above collided roughly with her.

…

"Target sighted," Nimbus stated, spotting the intruder streaking across the stadium, "engaging with manual force."

He positioned himself for his attack, tucking in his wings, and folding his legs up, tucking into a ball for speed. Just before the collision, he extended his legs and wrapped them around the target. The pony had no idea what hit her.

…

"Ow!" Rainbow said, smacking solidly into the ground. She hit the soft grass and tumbled, rolling end-over-end until she stopped, confused. What had hit her?

She looked up. Nothing was in sight. Then something hit the ground in front of her with a thud, raising a cloud of dust. Rainbow coughed and blinked. Whatever this was could sure make an entrance. As the dust cleared, she saw the silhouette of another pony- a male Pegasus about her age, standing in front of her. Slowly she could make out his orange coat and black mane and tail.

"What in Equestria did you do _that _for?" she asked angrily, standing up.

The pony didn't answer. Instead, he asked his own question.

"What's your name?"

Rainbow Dash stood tall. "I'm Rainbow Dash, the best flyer in Equestria!"

The orange pony smirked. "Right. Somehow I doubt that."

"Believe what you want," Rainbow Dash growled, kicking up dust, "but it's the truth."

"I'm Nimbus, a flyer in the EDF," the pony said, ignoring her. Then he fixed his gaze upon her, glaring with his deep brown eyes. "Rainbow Dash, you have violated restricted airspace under the temporary control of the EDF. What do you have to say for yourself?"

Rainbow Dash gulped, then glared back. If this pony wanted to be tough, she'd show him right back just how tough she could be.


	2. Chapter 2: Wonderbolt 1

_Chapter 2: Thunderbolt 1_

"And who do you think _you _are to talk to me like that?" Rainbow Dash snorted at Nimbus, "you're no older than I am."

"Well, uh, yeah-" Nimbus stammered, "but I went to the Equestrian Defence Academy! So there! Now do as I say and stay out of the skies!"

"Sheesh," Rainbow Dash said, pawing the ground, "all you had to do was ask."

"Well this is a matter of security," Nimbus said none too confidently, "and it's my job as an EDF flyer and as a Pegasus to protect the ponies of Equestria during this important ceremonial event!" He puffed out his chest as he finished his sentence and stood tall.

"Uh huh," said Rainbow, not buying into his show of force and confidence, "well if you're a Pegasus like me, then how come I've never seen you around Cloudsdale?"

"I thought I just told you," Nimbus said irritably, "I've been at the Equestrian Defense Academy."

"Oh, right," Rainbow said, rolling her eyes. "I'm still pretty sure that doesn't make you a better flyer than me."

Nimbus's eyes widened in disbelief. "What did you say?"

"You know _exactly _what I said," Rainbow Dash spoke, smirking.

Nimbus nodded, then burst out laughing. "You've got to be kidding me! There's no way you could hope to outfly me! EDF flyers are the best in the land!"

"Oh really?" Rainbow Dash asked, suddenly adopting a challenging tone, "then why don't we find out just how true that is."

"Alright," said Nimbus, gazing skyward, "but only for a moment. I have a job to do. We'll play chase, and my job is to catch you."

"Fine," Rainbow said. "3, 2, 1, go!"

Rainbow Dash sprung into the air as fast, it seemed, as lightning.

"Oh no you don't," said Nimbus, giving chase. He started following the blue Pegasus through the air, matching her every move but not coming any closer. For an ordinary pony, he thought, she sure was fast! He saw his chance when Rainbow Dash went into a bank turn. Flaring his wings, he slowed and turned inside of her, and was about to strike when his helmet com sputtered to life.

"Nimbus, you there?"

Nimbus disengaged, cursing himself for having been distracted. He saw Rainbow Dash turn around and fly back towards him.

"I'm here, Sunshine. What's up?"

"Did you find the intruder?"

Nimbus took another look back at Rainbow. "Yeah, I found her. She's got a warning. Just a Pegasus Pony."

"Alright," Sunshine responded, "resume your patrol. The Thunderbolts will be here soon."

"Roger," Nimbus said, "Nimbus out."

He flew over to Rainbow Dash, glaring. "You see what you've done?" he asked, angrily.

"What?" Rainbow Dash asked, completely confused.

"You sabotaged my mission! You distracted me! Get out of here now so I can do my job!"

Rainbow Dash was crushed by Nimbus's words. She had just been having fun, and it seemed he had been, too. Now she was blinking back tears. This pony could've been a good friend.

"Fine," she said, and turned around, flying for the stadium grounds, "I never wanted to hang out with you anyway."

Nimbus tried shrugging off her words, but inside, they stung him, too. He didn't have time for a friend in his life right now, though, he reasoned.

But if that was true, then why did he want desperately for Rainbow Dash to come back?

…

Rainbow rocketed through the sky back towards her friends, her anger forcing her to go faster. She was traveling so quickly, she ended up creating a sonic rainboom on the way, startling several ponies walking to the stadium. Finally, Rainbow spotted her friends walking as a group, and touched down, skidding towards them and stopping right in front of Pinkie Pie.

"Well hi, Rainbow!" Pinkie said.

"Hi," Rainbow Dash responded, hanging her head and walking to the back of the group. Pinkie Pie just watched with a slack jaw. Rainbow Dash almost never acted like this.

"I saw you up over the stadium earlier," Rarity said, trying to be helpful.

"Yeah," Fluttershy said, then added, "it looks like you've found a friend!"

"A friend?" Twilight Sparkle said, "that's great! You'll have to introduce us."

"Friend," Rainbow Dash snorted, "_ha. _More like a stuck-up wonderhooves."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Apple Jack said, coming to her friend's side, "but cheer up a bit. I'm sure you'll love watching the Thunderbolts perform."

"Oh yeah!" Rainbow said, suddenly perking up again. "I can't wait!"

"Then let's get going!" Pinkie Pie said, leading the way. Rainbow Dash followed happily, putting the new Pegasus out of her mind for the moment. Today, she'd get her chance once again to prove herself to the Thunderbolts. She only hoped that nothing out of the ordinary would interrupt her _this_ time.

She couldn't be more wrong.

…

Nimbus took his seat up in Princess Celestia's and Princess Luna's private box along with the rest of his security detail. He was eager to see the show. The Thunderbolts had flown over during his graduation from the Equestrian Defense Academy, and now rumor had it that he and his group were about to meet them in person. He could barely contain his excitement.

"I'm glad the EDF could spare ponies like you," Celestia said to Sunshine, a gold Pegasus and the leader of the detail.

"Verily," Princess Luna agreed, "mine nerves hath been calmed by thine presence here."

"Especially with the dark magic reports from the borders," Celestia agreed.

"Well, your Highness," Sunshine said, "it's our job, and frankly, we enjoy being here. It was quite generous of you to allow us to enjoy this show."

"Oh, think nothing of it," Celestia said, "as I said before, I'm glad you're here."

Nimbus suddenly heard the sound of approaching hooves. As he swiveled to see who was approaching, his jaw dropped. The Thunderbolts themselves were heading his way!

"Greetings," the lead Thunderbolt said, approaching Sunshine. Sunshine dipped his head in acknowledgement.

"Pleased to meet you, sir. I'm glad you could take the time to meet me and the rest of my detail."

"Always time for the defenders of our homeland," the Thunderbolt responded. "I'm Thunderbolt One, and behind me are two and three. We'll be flying today."

Thunderbolt One suddenly turned to look at Nimbus. "And it seems we have quite the acrobat over here."

"Me?" Nimbus asked, "but I don't-"

"Oh come now, we saw you doing a few tricks over the field. Very impressive."

Nimbus blushed. "Was that me? I, uh…" he glanced over at Sunshine who was looking at him disapprovingly, "yeah, I guess it was."

"Well keep up the practice," said Thunderbolt One, "you never know- we might need a new team member someday."

Nimbus wasn't sure why, but for some reason, the pony's words seemed ominous. He dismissed the thought, however. He was probably just getting over his senior pony finding out about his stadium antics with that Rainbow Dash girl.

"Thanks, sir!" he said, "I can't wait to see you guys perform."

"Oh yes, this performance is definitely going to be one of our best. The finale is unmatched in its majesty. You might even say it'll be… _explosive._"

Thunderbolt One turned and walked away with the rest of his team, but just before he walked out of sight, he turned around and winked at Nimbus. Nimbus wasn't sure what to make of the gesture. It seemed friendly enough, perhaps even cool, but something about it unnerved him. He didn't have much time to dwell on it, however. Sunshine scooted over to his side.

"So, Nimbus, what's this about aerobatics?"

"Sir, it's nothing, really," Nimbus responded, "I was just, uh, meeting a newcomer and having a bit of fun. It won't happen again, sir."

Sunshine's eyes narrowed, then suddenly became friendly as he smiled and patted Nimbus on the back.

"I was wondering when you'd lose that businesslike demeanor! And now you've gone and found a friend to boot! It's about time you let some fun into your life!"

Nimbus was utterly shocked. He'd been expecting a harsh rebuke, not this.

"Sir?"

"Ever since you left that Academy, all you've thought about is work, work, work, which isn't a bad thing, I guess. The trouble is, I've never seen you with any friends. Ever. Now you've got one!"

Nimbus was confused, now. "But sir, what about my job? I left my patrol!"

"Well, I must agree with you on that, but I trust you'll do better next time. Making friends is much better for you in the long run."

"I guess," Nimbus said, thinking about Rainbow Dash. Sunshine was wrong. She wasn't a friend. She was an annoyance, someone who'd upset his world and proven herself capable of being as good a flyer as himself. He would never befriend her.

…

"Fillies and Gentlecolts!"

An enthusiastic voice sounded over the loudspeaker, and Rainbow Dash nearly fell from her seat. A few moments ago, Pinkie Pie had excused herself, supposedly for refreshments. It was _her _voice which was now echoing over the stadium, though! Rainbow turned to her friends, and all of them were equally amazed. She'd managed to keep the whole thing a secret. Slowly, they began to clap, and the rest of the audience joined in.

"Aw, thanks!" Pinkie said, having obviously discovered the source of the clapping. She cleared her throat and continued. "Ahem- please give a warm welcome to Equestria's best and brightest flyers: the Thunderbolts!"

On the announcement of their name, the Thunderbolts zoomed over the stands from behind, surprising everyone and bringing about more clapping. When they reached the middle of the stadium, they pulled up, with the ponies on the sides splitting to the left and right in a giant fan formation.

Rainbow Dash was positively glued to the scene. "Go Thunderbolts!" she yelled through a mouthful of popcorn.

The Thunderbolts came in again, making several low, tight passes, barely missing each other. It was their most daring act yet, and more was to come. They, swooped, swung, spun, and dove upon the crowd, stirring everyone into a frenzy. Their show was one of the best around.

Finally, it was time for the final act: the formation pass. The ponies formed up in a triangle shape and sped towards the field. Suddenly, halfway through the maneuver, Thunderbolt One pulled up and out of formation, hovering as his teammates whizzed by with perplexed expressions.

"What in Equestria-?" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. She'd never seen them do _that _before. Nonetheless, it was bold, and she began to clap along with everyone else. The other Thunderbolts formed up alongside Thunderbolt One as they accepted the audience's praise. Suddenly, a deep boom sounded, and the sky darkened. From out of the clouds shot blue bolts of light, which converged upon Thunderbolt One, surrounding him in glowing energy. Slowly, a transformation began to take place. The pony which had once been Thunderbolt One, was now changing into something else; some kind of nightmarish creature. The bolts of light suddenly retreated, leaving a large, dark shape hovering in the middle of the Thunderbolts. Suddenly, the shape moved, and a head, black as night with glowing blue eyes snapped up and stared straight at Princess Luna's royalty box. At first glance, Rainbow Dash could swear that the being in front of them was none other than Nightmare Moon, but something was different. This pony was stockier, and looked stronger.

"Greetings, Ponies of Equestria," the newcomer said in a sinister, male voice. This was most definitely not Nightmare Moon. This was someone else entirely. He fixed his gaze entirely upon Luna.

"And greetings to you… sister."

…

"I'm engaging!" said Sunshine, headed straight for the dark pony. The creature barely shrugged, and a massive flash of blue appeared. When the light died down, all that was in Sunshine's place was a frog bearing his cutie mark: the sun.

"What?" Nimbus breathed, "impossible!"

"No one does that to my senior pony!" Nimbus's second partner, Cloudburst, said.

"No, Cloudburst, wait!" Nimbus said, but it was too late. Cloudburst rushed at the strange figure and met the same fate.

The nightmarish pony chuckled. "Two down. Anyone else want to try?"

"What dost thou want, fiend?!" Princess Luna boldly asked. The pony smiled.

"Why, you of course, and your kingdom. You've been away for a long time, Luna. Or should I say, 'Nightmare Moon'?"

He turned to the rest of the ponies in the audience.

"My name is Eclipse," he said. "Doubtless many of you have forgotten about me. I understand, it's been quite a while. I am willing to forgive that, of course. I just demand one small thing from you: your princess."

"Never!" shouted a voice from the audience. Nimbus looked to the source. It was one of Rainbow Dash's friends: a purple Unicorn.

Eclipse chuckled darkly. "Very well, there are certainly alternatives. Mind you, I get what I want, no matter the cost others might pay."

"Stop!" Princess Luna's voice sounded from the stands. The valiant Princess stood bravely. "If it will protect my ponies, I shalt travel with thee."

"Good," Eclipse said, smiling. Suddenly a tendril of blue light shot out of his hoof and wrapped itself around Luna, pulling her to his side.

"Don't try to follow me," Eclipse growled, and took off into the sky.

"No!" Nimbus shouted, and took to the sky after Eclipse. The black pony saw his pursuer and laughed.  
"Foolish boy, but you have spirit. I will let you fight another day." A second tendril of blue light hit Nimbus and knocked him out of control. He began to spin wildly, heading for the ground.

…

Rainbow Dash saw the accident, and despite her loathing towards Nimbus, decided upon the one noble course of action she could take. She launched herself into the air, trying to find the right angle to intercept Nimbus. The pony was dropping quickly, and it would only be a matter of seconds before he hit the ground. Rainbow mustered all the strength she could and flew straight for Nimbus, catching him just a few hands above the ground. The crowd cheered.

"You saved me," Nimbus croaked.

"Yeah, you're welcome," Rainbow Dash growled, unceremoniously dumping Nimbus onto the stadium field and walking back to her friends. Nimbus watched her go, realizing that she probably was still upset from what he'd said earlier. He wanted badly to apologize, but when he turned his head in the direction that Eclipse had gone, he knew he couldn't. Not yet. In the distance, darkness was gathering. He didn't know what Eclipse wanted with Princess Luna, but he knew it wouldn't be good. Suddenly, his mission was clear. He turned around to see Rainbow Dash still walking away. Something like this would call for backup, and his team, having been recently transformed into amphibians, wasn't going to be much help. He needed some new muscle.

"Hey, Rainbow Dash! Wait up!" He called, swallowing his pride.


	3. Chapter 3:Investigations and Revelations

_Chapter 3: Investigations and Revelations_

Rainbow Dash smirked when she heard who was calling her name. It seemed the EDF colt was suddenly in need of some assistance. How ironic.

She turned around and acknowledged Nimbus.

"Well, well. Look what the Manticore dragged in."

Nimbus growled under his breath. He reminded himself he was only doing this for the good of Equestria, and because his team was now officially compromised. He opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again.

"What's the matter? Want to say something? Apologize, perhaps?" Rainbow Dash pressed.

"No," Nimbus said, gritting his teeth, "I just need… your help."

Rainbow simply stared at him for a few moments, then broke down, guffawing wildly.

"And you expect to get that without an apology?" she laughed. Nimbus felt the sarcasm in the air was so thick he could cut it with a knife. Rainbow suddenly stopped laughing and stared straight at Nimbus.

"Apology first."

"What?" Nimbus asked, "the safety of Equestria may be at stake and you want an _apology?"_

"Yes she does," said Applejack, stepping up to Rainbow Dash's side, "and if you're not gonna give it, none of us is going to help you."

Nimbus gulped. He wasn't expecting to work with _everyone, _and so far he wasn't off to a good start. He felt there would be a lot of pride-swallowing in this group. He grated his teeth and mumbled.

"I apologize."

"What was that?" Rainbow Dash asked teasingly, with a hint of a smile.

"I'm sorry," Nimbus said aloud, "I shouldn't have yelled at you earlier."

"Goody!" Pinkie Pie said, showing up with the rest of her friends. She appeared a little shaken; the announcer's booth had been right up next to the action. Otherwise, though, she seemed fine. After her little exclamation she looked around and noticed what was going on. "I mean, not 'goody' really, because Princess Luna just got taken, but 'goody' because it looks like we've got a new friend!"

Nimbus's eyes widened and he took a step back. "Uh, well I'm not- you see, I- um…"

"Welcome to the club!" Pinkie said, wrapping her arms around Nimbus and practically squeezing the life out of him in a massive hug, popping his helmet off.

"Why thank you," Nimbus said hoarsely. "It seems like a lot of… fun."

Pinkie relaxed her hold and Nimbus dropped to the ground like a sack of feed.

"How about some introductions?" Pinkie asked.

"Sure," Nimbus croaked, "why not?"

Pinkie introduced the ponies one-by-one. "This is Twilight Sparkle," she said, indicating a purple unicorn, "she's really smart, and helpful."

Twilight dipped her head, and Nimbus saw her purple horn glow. _"Cool," _he thought to himself.

"This is Applejack," Pinkie continued, pointing to a golden-yellow Earth Pony.

"Howdy!" the pony said. Nimbus recognized her as the one who'd demanded an apology from him. She seemed nice enough.

"Rarity and Fluttershy," Pinkie said, standing next to a white Earth Pony and a pink and yellow Pegasus, "and of course, you've already met Rainbow Dash," she said.

"And I'm Pinkie Pie!" she finished, suddenly bouncing forward and planting herself right in front of Nimbus's face. "So who are you?"

"Nimbus," the orange pony said.

"Welcome to the group, Nimbus!" said Twilight. "I hate to cut things short, but we've got some work to do."

"Sounds good to me," Nimbus said. He liked Twilight immediately. She seemed to have an almost militaristic sense of duty. She obviously liked to get things done. "Do you know anything about this… Eclipse fellow?"

"I'm afraid not," said Twilight. "In all of my books about the history of Equestria, I've never come across that name before. He looked a lot like Nightmare Moon, though."

"That's what I thought, too," said Fluttershy, quietly.

"Do you think there might be any connection?" Nimbus pressed.

"I don't know," said Twilight, "but let's see if we can find something about it in the library."

"_Your_ library?" Applejack asked. "No offense to you, Twilight, you've got a mighty purty collection of books, but you've been through almost all of them. If you haven't heard of Eclipse before, you probably won't find anything."

"Not _my _library," Twilight said, grinning determinedly, "the _royal _library."

Nimbus picked up his helmet and attached it to his side. It was time to get some work done.

…

As the group of ponies, plus their latest member, walked into town, the sky was starting to clear already. Eclipse had darkened the skies here, but evidently was now too far away for his power to reach the kingdom. Canterlot was safe, for now. Passing the many bakeries and food markets which had prepared for the Gala, the ponies' noses were assaulted by the most wonderful scents. Rarity's stomach growled.

"Whew," she said, "I know we're kind of in the middle of possibly saving all of Equestria again, but can we get a snack?"

Twilight's stomach growled as well, "yeah, I think you're right. I could use something to eat before I study."

"Where to?" Nimbus asked, sounding a little less grumpy than earlier, "I've never really been around here before."

"Definitely the High Flight café," Rainbow Dash said before anyone else could say anything.

"What's that?"

"It's where the Wonderbolts stay while they're in town," Rainbow responded, "and the food's positively super!"

"Well, it's okay," Fluttershy said, "but I'd like to go."

"Okay!" Rainbow said, jumping up into the air and taking off down the street. She made it about halfway down the street when she realized her friends were still walking, and scooted back.

"Eager much?" Nimbus said, unable to resist a jibe.

"The jealousy here is _so _obvious," said Rainbow Dash with a grin. "Too bad you can't hope to be _that _fast."

"I don't have to be," Nimbus snapped, taking Rainbow's words a bit seriously, "my technique makes up for everything."

"Chill out," Rainbow said, "I was just joking."

Nimbus was still sore from his forced apology earlier. His ego had taken a serious bruising, and he still wasn't sure he could forgive Rainbow for it. Perhaps someday later, but now was too soon.

"We're here!" said Rainbow excitedly, walking into a bright blue two-story building. As Nimbus stepped inside, a rush of cool air hit him in the face, and he realized just how hot it had been outside. Coming in here felt good. The ponies took their seats at a booth, and Nimbus pulled up a stool and joined them. Shortly, a waitress came over and took their orders. As Nimbus was in the process of ordering a "Bolt from the Blue Burger," a loud thump sounded from upstairs.

"Excuse me," he asked the waitress, "what's that noise."

The waitress looked up at the ceiling as the thump sounded again. "Oh, that? Probably the Wonderbolts. They've been struggling with something up there all morning."

"The Wonderbolts need help?" Rainbow asked, concerned. "Count me in!" She shot up out of her seat and raced for the stairs. The others followed. Nimbus was the first to reach the top, alongside Rainbow Dash. At the top, they turned down a hallway and saw Spitfire and Fleetfoot, Wonderbolts two and three. They seemed to be struggling with a door.

"Hey!" Rainbow said, "you guys need anything?"

"Thank goodness," Spitfire said, looking at the approaching ponies, "more help. I'm afraid simply having more hooves on the job won't do too much, though." She recognized Rainbow Dash approaching.

"Rainbow Dash," she said, "I haven't seen you in a while."

"Same to you," Rainbow said. "What's the trouble?"

"We left some of our equipment in our lead's room," Spitfire said, "but he locked it. We can't get in."

"I think I can help," said Twilight, "If you'll allow me."

"By all means," said Fleetfoot, stepping aside, "if you know how to open this door, I'm not stopping you."

Twilight looked closely at the door lock, squinting and murmuring to herself. Finally, she turned to the Wonderbolts.

"This is a Safecloud lock," she said, "made by a small group of Pegasi in Cloudsdale. They're impossible to open, unless…" her voice trailed off, looking around.

"What is she up to?" Nimbus whispered to Applejack.

"To be honest, ah have no idea," the pony said, "but ya get used to it."

Nimbus shrugged and went back to watching Twilight go about her business. She stuck her face under a nearby dresser and let out a cheerful "aha!" She lifted a single, whitish-blue feather out from under the dresser with her horn's powers.

"A feather?" Spitfire asked, "but how does that-?"

"Watch," Twilight said, inserting the feather into the lock. The structure suddenly began to emit a blue glow, and then a click sounded. The door creaked open.

"And we're in," said Twilight. "I studied these locks for a while," she explained, "they won't open unless they come into contact with a feather from the owner."

"Twilight," said Pinkie, "you rock!"

Twilight smiled. "Thanks, Pinkie."

"Thank you so much," Spitfire said, "now we can get our equipment."

Twilight suddenly had an idea. "Excuse me," she said to the two Wonderbolts, "but why did you have a new lead flyer today?"

"It's funny you should mention that," Spitfire said, standing in the doorway, "Soarin' actually came with us to Canterlot, but yesterday he was gone. He left us a note saying that he was sick, and that he'd send for a replacement. Sure enough, the new pony showed up just yesterday afternoon. He never told us his real name, just had us refer to him as 'one.' We had our suspicions about him from the start. After today's events, it seems we were right to be suspicious."

Twilight nodded. "Yeah, and that reminds me- did any of you know about this 'Eclipse' before today?"

"Nope," said Fleetfoot as Spitfire shook her head, "never heard of him. He looked an awful lot like Nightmare Moon, though. Maybe they're related."

"Wait!" said Nimbus, "Eclipse called Princess Luna 'sister.' You might be right!"

"But how can that be?" Rarity asked, "the only known relative of the princess is Princess Celestia."

"Right," Twilight said, "the only _known _relative, perhaps, but who's to say Eclipse wasn't related to her at some point?"

Rainbow Dash could barely contain herself. Princess Luna had just been snatched by an evil, probably mythical pony and all anyone was doing was standing around and talking. She desperately wanted some action, but forcibly restrained herself.

"Do you know anything else about the pony that replaced Soarin'?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I'm afraid not," answered Spitfire, "and we have to get back to report this to Soarin'."

"We can help you carry the gear out if you want," Pinkie offered.

"Could you?" asked Fleetfoot with a smile, "that would be great!"

The two Wonderbolts led the way into the room, and the other ponies followed. Everything in the room appeared to be in pristine condition. Not even a speck of dust was present. This unnerved Nimbus, who checked to the left, right, and behind upon entering. Something definitely didn't feel right here.

As they were gathering up uniforms and other belongings, a loud thump sounded from the closet. Nimbus's head quickly snapped around.

"Anypony in here, please tell me that was you," he said, slowly. Nobody answered him. In fact, no one was even close to the closet. Nimbus approached the door warily.

"Guys, I think there's someone in here," he said.

Spitfire came to his side. "You might be right. Here," she said, nudging Nimbus aside, "allow me."

She attempted pushing the door open, but it didn't budge. "Ehm, Twilight-" she said, glancing back at the purple Unicorn, "you wouldn't happen to have that feather handy, would you?"

"Well of course," said Twilight, placing the feather in the lock. Nothing happened.

"This won't work," she concluded, a tad unnecessarily, "this is the wrong kind of lock."

"We don't have time to look for a lock," said Fleetfoot, "so what'll we do now?"

"Manual entry," said Nimbus, stepping to the door and raising his back hoof. "Stand back, guys."

Nimbus pulled his hoof back, and, like a spring, released it, crashing right into the door. The lock popped off of the door, and it swung open, hitting something on the other side. Whatever the door had hit uttered a groan.

"Oops," said Nimbus.

Spitfire came closer and peered into the dark, waiting for her eyes to adjust. When they finally did, her gaze rested upon something bundled up on the floor.

"Oh no," she breathed, "this is not good. Not good at all."


	4. Chapter 4: Research

_Chapter 4: Research_

Spitfire found herself looking down at the original Wonderbolt 1: Soarin', completely wrapped up in a sheet with his mouth gagged.

"Soarin'!" she cried, taking off his gag. Soarin' gasped.

"He's not a Wonderbolt! Eclipse! Beware Eclipse!" he panted. Then slowly, his breathing slowed down as a dreadful realization hit him.

"It's already happened, hasn't it? Eclipse… Did he take Princess Luna?"

"I'm afraid so," said Rainbow Dash, stepping forward. "Do you know anything about Eclipse?"

Soarin' shuddered. "I wish I did. He never revealed much to me, other than his plans for today. If I were to harbor a guess, I would say he's an Alicorn, corrupted like Nightmare Moon."

"But no legend ever told of him," Nimbus said, "so what is he?"

Standing shakily, Soarin' shrugged. "I have no idea. Pure evil is all I can say."

"We're going to the Royal Library," said Twilight, "to try to see what we can dig up on Eclipse."

"You're taking this on yourselves?" asked Soarin', aghast.

"We most certainly are," said Rainbow Dash, determined.

"Uh, actually," said Nimbus, "you guys just reminded me- I need to report to Princess Celestia about the day's events. Normally, my commander, Sunshine, would do it, but he's kind of…" he took a quick look at the two frogs who had stowed away in his helmet "occupied at the moment."

"Perfect," said Soarin', "we need to do the same."

"Then let's move!" said Applejack, "We ain't got time to waste!"

…

As always, the Royal Palace was an impressive sight. Its tall spires jutted into the sky, its trim shining in the sun- one could almost forget about the tragedy that had befallen Equestria earlier that day. Almost. The group stopped at the foot of the bridge.

"We part ways here for now," said Nimbus, "let me know what you find out later."

"Hang on just a sec," Rainbow Dash interjected, "I was in the middle of that attack at the stadium, too. I'm coming with the Wonderbolts."

Nimbus looked to Rainbow Dash, then back to Twilight.

"You okay with this?"

Twilight shrugged. "Sure. I just need some time with the books."

"Then Rainbow and I will come meet you in the library when we're done."

"That's _Rainbow Dash _to you, Smarty," Rainbow snapped at Nimbus. "I have a full name, and we are not on a nickname basis, so I expect you to use it!"

Nimbus backed off, deciding to let this battle lie. "Fine, fair enough, whatever you say. Let's just get in and get out."

"See you later," Twilight said, leading her friends towards the library.

"Bye!" Rainbow called. Soarin' stepped up to the massive, gold-trimmed gates and knocked once. Slowly they opened, and the group walked through, stepping between rows of Royal Guards on either side. The ponies all walked at stiff attention, rendering the proper courtesies. As they stepped in front of the throne, all of them knelt. Nimbus took a quick look at Princess Celestia. She seemed tired, and wearier than she had ever looked before. Nimbus understood. To lose a family member after they'd just become so close must be difficult.

After Princess Celestia nodded her head in acknowledgement, the group stood back at attention.

"Detail," said Soarin' using his military command voice, "present arms!"

The five ponies saluted, and the Princess returned the gesture.

"Order arms!" said Soarin', and the ponies dropped their hooves. Princess Celestia smiled faintly.

"Relax," she said, then recalling her military courtesies said, "stand at ease."

The ponies unlocked themselves from their rigid attention. "Now," said Celestia, "what brings you here?"

"Ma'am, we wish to make a report," said Spitfire.

"Very well," said Celestia, "you may proceed."

"None of us were able to apprehend the villain now known as Eclipse," said Fleetfoot, "and as you know, he has taken Princess Luna."

"Yes," Celestia said solemnly, dipping her head.

"However," Soarin' interjected, "well, I'd better let Nimbus handle this."

Nimbus stepped forward, snapping again to attention and saluting. "1st Lieutenant Nimbus, 20th Air Defense Squadron, Equestrian Defense Force Reports!"

"Please," said Celestia, shaking her hoof, "no formalities. You are at rest here."

Hesitantly, Nimbus relaxed. "Ma'am, I have joined a…" he searched for the proper phrase, "-task force which has assembled in the hope of finding Princess Luna and stopping Eclipse."

"You have?" asked Celestia, "please tell me who is involved."

"Six ponies that were with me at the stadium today: Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash. The last one saved my life, in fact." He looked back at Rainbow Dash with a smile. The blue Pegasus just glared back.

"I know them," said Celestia, "and I know they are capable of helping us in these difficult times. Where are they now?"

"Doing research, ma'am," Nimbus replied, "trying to find out what they can about Eclipse."

Celestia frowned. "Sadly, I attempted to do the same, but I could find no book explaining his existence. But perhaps Twilight Sparkle…" she let her sentence trail off. "Nimbus, I would like you to bring your group to me later, and I will tell you all what I know of this threat. If you wish to undertake this task, then I approve. I may have someone who can back you up as well…"

"Who?" Nimbus asked.

"I'd rather not say until you all are assembled. Good luck in the Library."

"Thank you, ma'am." Nimbus stepped back to the Wonderbolts, saluted with them, then turned smartly on his hooves and walked out. At the gate, he spoke to the Wonderbolts.

"Best of luck to all of you. I hope your journey back to Cloudsdale is safe."

"Thank you, Nimbus," said Spitfire. "Sounds like we might be on alert for a while now. I hope you are successful in your journey.

"Thank you," Nimbus replied, "I'll do my best."

With Nimbus's final words, the Wonderbolts launched themselves into the air in a graceful formation. Nimbus watched them fly away, then stretched his wings and took off, heading for the Library. Perhaps his new teammates had found something.

…

The magical shroud of darkness which had been placed over Luna's vision for most of the flight was finally lifted. The young princess found herself in a cave. The air was musty, and water dripped from the ceiling. She turned her head from side to side, finally adjusting to the darkness. No one was near.

"Ah, I see you have come to your senses, sister," a snakelike voice crept through the cave.

"Where art thee, villain?" Luna said, furious, "show thyself!"

"In time, perhaps, I will," said the voice. "But perhaps you'd rather know your purpose here."

"My purpose is to watch over Equestria with my sister," Luna countered. The voice simply chuckled darkly.

"Of course," it said, "Equestria. The place you came so close to ruling. Does it dishearten you, knowing that you never had the chance to rule such a place by yourself?"

"Nay," Luna spat, "and I will never betray my sister again!"

"So you say," the voice whispered, "yet I wonder…"

In front of Luna, the dark, Alicorn stallion from earlier today materialized, grinning evilly.

"Eclipse," said Luna, "though art not my sibling."

Eclipse laughed. "Perhaps not a sibling by _your _definition," he said, "but my dear princess, we are very much related. Closer, in fact, then most siblings."

He began to pace. "Perhaps you know me better like this." He suddenly shifted, changing his features until he resembled a tall, female Alicorn with a dark coat and a glowing, blue mane. Luna's eyes widened.

"Nightmare Moon," she whispered, "I believed thee to be gone forever."

"Not gone," the Alicorn snarled, changing back into Eclipse, "just dormant, trapped for many years. When those base ponies used the Elements of Harmony to free you, they only separated me from you. I represent the… better side of you: ambition, power, a hunger to rule. These are the qualities I represent. Nightmare Moon was a combination of me and you, and until the day she was defeated, I was always a part of you, hiding in the back of your mind. Since you were freed of me, I… developed. I know the secrets Equestria holds, I know how to defeat you, and I know very well how to overthrow the current rule of Celestia."

"Thou cannot," Luna countered.

"Oh, I beg to differ," said Eclipse, slowly sidling up next to her, "you see, I am the darkness now, I am the bringer of Eternal Night. Nightmare Moon tried and failed. I am different. Without your little traces of good clouding my judgment, I can act unrestrained. Equestria will fall to me."

"Never," said Luna, "not as long as ponies exist with the will to resist."

As he faded back into the darkness, Eclipse couldn't resist one last parting blow. "The will of a community is like a tree. Strong, yes, but given enough force, it will break. And when a tree falls, it falls harder than almost anything in the world."

Eclipse began to laugh maniacally, and Luna glared at where he had been.

"We will see who is the strongest, knave."

…

"Nothing, not here, nope, not that one either, wait… nah, that won't do-"

Twilight was frantically speed-reading through several of the Royal Library's books when Nimbus showed up with Rainbow Dash.

"Find anything yet?" Rainbow asked.

"No," said Twilight, frustrated, "seems like no one knows where Eclipse came from."

"Hey, this is cool!" Pinkie Pie's voice sounded from above, as she bounced down from the top of a nearby bookshelf, landing right in front of Fluttershy.

"Aah!" Fluttershy squealed in surprise. Pinkie took no notice and began to bounce around the room- vertically, horizontally, diagonally- pretty much defying the laws of the universe as everypony knows it.

"What's cool?" Nimbus asked, halting Pinkie.

"Check this out!" Pinkie said in response, cracking open a new, shiny, black book. Nimbus looked at what was on the page. It was a triangular symbol, and in each of the corners was a hoof, a horn, and a feather. Nimbus's eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to speak, but before he could get a word out, Pinkie had already bounced the book over to Twilight, and had shoved over an entire stack of priceless volumes to show her the discovery.

Twilight looked at the book. "Huh," she mused, "_Precursor to the Elements, by Retired Royal Scout Corporal Mecha._ I never knew Mecha wrote books!"

"Mecha?" Nimbus asked, "who's that?"

"An old friend of ours," said Twilight, "now shush." Twilight began reading slowly, poring over the book's contents. "Interesting," she mumbled, "he's proposed a theory that an extremely powerful magical artifact exists that predated the elements of harmony." She looked up at Pinkie. "Why did you choose this book?"

Pinkie shrugged. "I dunno, but it just seemed important!" She turned and winked at no one in particular.

"Why did you just do that?" Nimbus asked, noticing the gesture.

"Just acknowledging the audience," Pinkie replied.

"The who? Wha-? Never mind," said Nimbus.

"She does that from time to time," said Applejack, "never really understood why."

"Hey," said Twilight, "this is interesting." The ponies gathered around. Twilight was pointing to the picture Pinkie Pie had shown Nimbus earlier. "Mecha's been doing a bit of research, and he's come to the conclusion that this supposed artifact looks something like this." She pointed to the different parts of the image. Now Nimbus could see that the symbols were displayed upon what appeared to be a large, hexagonally-cut gemstone. "There's a hoof, a horn, and a feather, which Mecha believes to symbolize the three races of ponies in Equestria, not including Alicorns. Apparently, this image has been depicted in places all over Equestria, and they predate the Elements of Harmony by centuries. Some propose that this thing is a source of power, and others claim it serves as a 'unifier' for the Elements, something to bring them together, and others say that this thing actually created the Elements."

"Wow," said Rarity, "it's beautiful."

"And spooky," Fluttershy added, "maybe we should leave this book alone."

"Well, Pinkie seems to think it's important," said Applejack. She turned to Nimbus, who was standing next to her. "Nimbus, what do-" she stopped. Nimbus was frozen to the spot, staring at the image with his mouth agape. "You okay?" Applejack asked.

Nimbus shook himself out of his daze. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just that I've seen this symbol before."

"You have?" said Twilight, putting the book down, "where?"

"My family has a very old stone, polished smooth and passed down each generation. It's got that symbol on it."

"Hmm," said Twilight, "perhaps there's a link. Wait!" she said, "here's something else in another section. It says: 'the Elements of Harmony, assuming that this Unifier exists, are not perfect. Without the Unifier, the source they draw their power from is gone, and there is a distinct possibility that if used, the Elements may not display their true potential, rendering certain spells incomplete.' I wonder… What if Nightmare Moon…" she trailed off. "Not important right now. The point is, I think this book has something to do with Eclipse's appearance. We need to take our findings to Celestia."

"Great," said Rainbow Dash, "it's about time some action got underway!"

…

The seven ponies approached Celestia, two of them for the second time that day. Celestia recognized them.

"Welcome, ponies," she said, then, turning to Nimbus and Rainbow Dash added: "I see you have brought your friends. Excellent."

"Princess Celestia," said Twilight, "I think I have a lead on why Eclipse is here."

"Oh?"

"Yes. I believe it has something to do with an artifact- one that existed long before the Elements of Harmony. Do you know of any such thing?"

Celestia was thoughtful for a moment. "I have heard rumors. Nothing more." She paused. "But there is somepony who might. His name is Mecha."

"We know him," said Twilight, then noticed Nimbus looking confused. "Well, _most _of us know him, anyway."

"Good. Seek out his help on your journey. He was always very loyal to my sister. Perhaps he can help you." Celestia settled back. "I wish you all the best of luck. It's not often somepony comes in here and volunteers for such a dangerous task. I trust you will all make Equestria proud."

"We will," said Twilight, "we most definitely will."

As the ponies left the palace, Nimbus began to wonder: just what sort of pony was Mecha? What would such a pony be like? He was clearly affiliated with the military, or at least was. All sorts of questions swarmed around inside Nimbus like a bunch of angry bees. Through it all, he only hoped for one thing: that this "Mecha" pony would be willing to help.


	5. Chapter 5: Mecha

_Chapter 5: Mecha_

For the second time that day, the ponies found themselves out in the crowded, bustling town square of Canterlot.

"So this Mecha pony-" Nimbus said, "he's around here somewhere, right?"

"Oh yes," said Pinkie, bouncing again, "he owns a blacksmithing shop right around here!" She looked around every which way. "At least, it's _somewhere _around here." She scratched her head and shrugged. "Oh well! We'll find him eventually!"

"Eventually?" said Nimbus, "but Equestria's in danger! We need to find him now!"

"Put a horseshoe in it, alarmist!" Rainbow Dash said, plugging Nimbus's mouth with her hoof, "do you want _everyone _to know?!"

Nimbus spat out the hoof. "Hey! What's the big idea?" He stepped backwards, and, not looking where he was going, ran into a fruit stand, which collapsed. Nimbus cringed as the wreckage settled into a cloud of dust.

"Whoops," he said. He turned to the others. "You go on ahead to Mecha's. I'm sure I can find some directions later. Right now, I need to help clean this up."

"Well, okay then," said Twilight.

"Serves you right, flypony!" Rainbow Dash said, sticking out her tongue and blowing a raspberry his way.

Nimbus shook his head and turned around to speak with the owner. Just then, another voice sounded from behind.

"Looks like trouble. Need any help?"

Nimbus turned to the source. Standing amidst the rubble was a black, male pony with a dark red mane. His cutie mark was that of a toolbox.

"Well sir, yes- that is, if it isn't any trouble."

The pony smiled. "No trouble at all. I was just on my way out of town, but if you need some assistance, I'd be more than happy to lend a hoof." The pony stepped forward and examined the fallen planks of wood.

"Hmm," he said, "in all honesty, this isn't the best constructed stand I've seen. You're using _wooden pegs _to hold it together? Embrace the future," he said, looking at the stand's owner. "I could fix this now, but if you give me about a week, I could rebuild it. It'd be stronger, sturdier, and it'd probably look cooler, too."

The owner shrugged. "Sure thing!"

"Great," the black pony said, "I'll just get this wreckage out of the way. You might wanna stand back."

Nimbus heard a whirring sound, and looked down. It was then that he noticed the pony's left leg, or rather his absence of one. In its place was a shiny, mechanical counterpart. A hatch on the leg opened, and the pony took out what appeared to be a small bag with a fuse leading out of it.

"Ground Hydra Scales," the pony said, carefully placing the bag under the wreckage, "unconventional? Maybe. Unorthodox? Definitely, but they do get the job done."

He grabbed a nearby torch and lit the fuse. "Everyone get down!" he yelled with a grin.

Nimbus took cover behind a nearby wagon. This was going to be interesting.

"Fire in the hole!" the black pony yelled. Suddenly, there was a tremendous, earth-shaking explosion, and the remnants of the fruit stand were thrown into the air and vaporized. The black pony stood up, laughing.

"Now that's what I call speedy removal!" he quipped, approaching Nimbus. "Don't worry about this stand, I've got it covered. Just be a little more careful next time, okay?"

"Sure!" Nimbus said. Then he remembered something. "Sir!" he called as the pony began to walk away. He turned his head back to acknowledge Nimbus. "Sir, do you happen to know where the home of somepony called 'Mecha' is?"

The pony looked thoughtful, then grinned slightly. "Why yes I do," he said slowly, "and I can take you there, if you want."

"You can?" Nimbus said, "great!"

"Right this way," said the pony, turning and heading down a side street, "follow me!"

Nimbus tagged along, following the pony closely. Upon closer examination, he could see the pony had a muscular physique, almost a military build. "Do you know Mecha?" he asked.

"Well, actually I do. We go way back," the pony said.

"I heard he was a Corporal in the Scouting Division. Is that true?"

The pony smiled. "Yes it is. He did his duty and got out when he could."

Nimbus raised an eyebrow. For some reason, it seemed like this pony was hiding something from him. He dismissed the thought and continued on. The pony looked back at Nimbus and spoke.

"Looks like you've had your share of military time, too."

Nimbus nearly puffed up with pride. "Yes sir, I'm a flyer in the Equestrian Defense Force."

"Ah," said the pony, "and that would explain the lightning cutie mark."

"Yep, I got that when I was commissioned."

"Let me see," said the pony, hanging a left onto another, less-busy street, "so that would make you… probably a 1st Lieutenant now, right?"

"Yes sir," said Nimbus.

"Well you must be really proud to serve your country," the pony said. "I know Mecha was when he was in."

They continued on in silence for a little while until Nimbus finally spoke again. "So, if you don't mind me asking, how did you get the- the-"

"The leg?" the pony said, chuckling. "Don't be afraid to call it what it is. I won't be offended. I got it in… a Manticore attack a few years ago."

Nimbus's virtual liar alarms were going nuts in his head right now. This pony was definitely lying to him. He decided to play along, however.

"Okay, I see," he said. The pony suddenly stopped.

"Well, this is it," he said, "Mecha's place."

"I don't see anypony around, though," Nimbus said, "are you sure he's in?"

"Well, I know he is, actually- more or less. I mean, he's standing right in front of you."

It took a moment for Nimbus to comprehend what the pony was saying. Then it hit him.

"Wait a moment- _you're _Corporal Mecha?"

"The one and only," said Mecha, "now let's get inside. I don't have a lot of time, but I can listen if you have a problem."

"I have a problem, alright," said Nimbus.

"How big?" Mecha asked.

"On a scale of one to ten… try 20% worse than ten."

Mecha frowned. "You'd better come in, then."

…

Mecha opened the door to his shop slowly. Nimbus couldn't help but notice how flawlessly it moved. There was no trace of any metallic squeaks, and the metal itself was polished to perfection. Had Mecha done this himself?

"Twenty percent," Mecha chuckled, "you've been hanging out with Rainbow Dash, haven't you?"

"Well, yeah," Nimbus said, "I have, but how does-"

"Don't worry about it," said Mecha. "Hang around that pony for long enough and you'll understand."

"Well, okay," said Nimbus, "now can we get down to business?"

The impatience in his tone was unmistakable, and Mecha picked up on it. "Well sure," he said. "Have a seat."

Nimbus walked over to a seat in Mecha's kitchen, but he didn't sit down. Things had to be done.

"Sir, I really need you to help me," said Nimbus, "it's a pretty serious problem.'

"Oh yeah?" said Mecha, looking through his pantry, "more serious than what I'm doing?"

Nimbus was confused. "Uh, looking through a pantry?"

"No," said Mecha, starting to get annoyed by this flyer, "the little problem I'm currently trying to follow up on." He looked at Nimbus by the seat. "Didn't they teach you any courtesy at that academy of yours?"

"Hey," Nimbus said, suddenly losing his formalities, "you can't insult the Academy."

"Actually, I can," said Mecha, "I'm retired."

"Retired already?" Nimbus mumbled under his breath, "typical Army type."

"_What did you just say?" _Mecha roared, lunging and pinning Nimbus to the wall.

"Er, nothing…"

"That's what I thought. I've been through a lot- more than you will ever know. Now we have two options here: the first is that you can sit down, shut up, and we'll talk. The second-" he raised his mechanical leg, "is me devising a really quick and painful way of sending you out of here."

Nimbus looked at the leg, then back at Mecha's face. The pony wasn't kidding.

"I'll go with option number one," he said, "no offense meant to you," he quickly added.

"None taken," said Mecha, "just have a seat and calm down."

This time, Nimbus sat as Mecha rummaged through the pantry. He looked around at the table. It was well-crafted, and made of solid metal. There were a few poker chips scattered across its surface, and one or two empty bottles present as well.

"You play poker?" he asked.

"Sure do," Mecha responded, "you should swing by sometime."

"Yeah," said Nimbus, "I'll see what my work schedule's like."

"Fair enough," said Mecha, "but you really shouldn't let your work dominate your life. Take it from a pony who's been there." He suddenly did a double take.

"What the hay? My chocolate's gone!" He began to pace the room, then suddenly looked up at the ceiling. "Alright, Pinkie Pie, show yourself!"

Inexplicably, Pinkie Pie dropped down from the ceiling behind Mecha, chowing down on a chocolate bar. "Hi, Mecha!" she said between bites, then "come out, gals!"

Slowly, the other ponies began to reveal themselves, stepping out of closets, from under desks, and even from the refrigerator, in Rarity's case. Mecha's jaw dropped.

"Well, I do believe I've been ambushed," he said with a grin. "What are you all doing here?"

"We're with Nimbus," Twilight said, "and we're on a mission we'd like your help with."

"You know I'd love to help you," Mecha said, "but I'm right in the middle of my own mission right now, as I was just explaining to your friend."

"Acquaintance," Rainbow Dash growled. Mecha stared at her.

"Oookay, then. Anyway, I'm afraid I probably can't assist you. You see, I'm trying to find out the whereabouts of-"

"Princess Luna?" Rarity asked, "so are we."

"Well," said Mecha, "that changes things, then. All of you'd better sit down."

The ponies took seats near Nimbus at the poker table as Mecha explained the situation.

"When Luna was stolen by Eclipse, I naturally decided to act. Unfortunately, I've found out nothing that explains him. Have any of you got a lead?"

"Well, as a matter of fact," Twilight said, "we have, and it's because of you."

"Me?" Mecha asked, surprised, "what did I do?"

"You wrote a book," Applejack said, "a book about something older than the Elements of Harmony.

"Well yes, I did, but-"

"And that's where I think we can find the answer," Twilight finished. "You see, in your book, you proposed that the Elements of Harmony, without the presence of a sort of 'Unifier', might be imperfect, and therefore, any spell cast by them might be rendered incomplete."

"Yes," Mecha said, intrigued, "go on."

"Well, what if the spell used to finally separate Luna from Nightmare Moon was also incomplete?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Mecha asked.

"First, the resemblance between Nightmare Moon and Eclipse is unmistakable," said Twilight, "and Eclipse actually called Luna his sister, but Luna's only known sibling is Celestia, so there must be another explanation. I believe that-"

"That Eclipse is a part of Nightmare Moon, somehow separated by the spell that freed Luna," Mecha finished for her. "I see." He paused for a moment, and Twilight was convinced he thought she was crazy. Then Mecha lifted a hoof and cried out in triumph.

"Of course! It all makes sense! Twilight, you are a genius!"

"Well, thanks!" Twilight said as Mecha hugged her, practically squeezing the air out of her lungs.

"There's something else, too," Nimbus said, "and I don't know exactly what it means yet, but the image on the Unifier is identical to one my family's passed down for generations. If I had to guess, Eclipse is probably very interested in something that powerful, and he's either looking for the Unifier or already has it. In any case, my family may know where we should start looking."

"Good," said Mecha, "then let's hit the road. We have no time to waste."

Mecha stood and exited the room, with the other ponies following, Pinkie Pie still finishing her chocolate. As they walked outside, they could see dark clouds gathering on the horizon. None of them knew exactly what was to come, but from the looks of things, Eclipse was getting ready to make his next move. Time was running out, and the ponies knew that if they didn't act fast, things could get a lot worse.

In fact, they already were.

**Many thanks to Mecha-Nii-San for Mecha, his OC, as well as Sugary Spice and Wolfgang, other OCs he created who will appear later!**


	6. Chapter 6: The Bargain

_Chapter 6: The Bargain_

Princess Luna mustered all the magic she could into her horn for the fifth time that day, making one last attempt to create light. Despite her efforts, only a small spark formed along the horn, which went out almost immediately. The cave she was in remained as dark as ever.

"Ha," Eclipse's voice said, chuckling, "it seems you've been out of touch with the night for too long, my dear."

"Vile creature, unhand me at once!" Luna demanded.

"Hmm," the voice said, "interesting idea. Would you like to be free of this cave?"

Luna's eyes widened, surprised. Of course, she suspected a trap, but Eclipse's words sounded surprisingly sincere.

"What dost thou mean, villain?"

As before, Eclipse materialized inches from her face, smiling. "I mean what I say, dear princess. Perhaps you'd care for a walk with me?"

"Thou speakest lies," Luna said, turning her head away. Eclipse vaporized in front of her and reappeared in her field of vision.

"I do not lie, Luna. Not to family." He offered her his hoof. "Come with me, and I'll… explain myself. Not everything is as it seems."

Hesitantly, Luna took the hoof, and turned to Eclipse. "If thou meanest to trick me, thou shalt regret it."

Eclipse merely smirked. "Hold on," he said. In a flash of blue, the cave swam before Luna's eyes, and shifted into a new image. Now she was standing on top of some kind of tower, looking out over the land. The sun was setting, and for a moment, she could almost pretend she was home.

"Welcome to my humble abode," Eclipse said, "what do you think?"

Luna looked around. The tower appeared to be quite tall, and it was attached to a castle, built of stone as black as night itself. She looked over the rim of the tower and nearly fainted in surprise. The ground was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the castle seemed to fade into the clouds below.

"Were art we?" she gasped.

"Skywatch Tower," Eclipse said, "an old Alicorn stronghold, as it were, and the stuff of legends. It floats in the sky on a field of magic, which makes it impossible for most ponies to discover." He turned to Luna. "The magic here is strong, to have held for so long, do you not agree?"

Despite her lingering distrust, Luna _was _impressed. The Alicorns of the past had obviously been very powerful and skilled.

"Verily," she said, "but thou must have some purpose for bringing me out here. Let us not waste time. What dost thou want with me?"

Eclipse turned to her. "In time, you will know. There is more to see first."

He took Luna and led her down the tower's twisting spiral staircase, and into a large room, a throne room, perhaps, Luna observed.

"When I returned to this world, I sought out this place, seeking refuge from those who had harmed me," Eclipse said, walking past an elaborately carved dining table and up to a tall throne. "I rested here, regaining my strength-" he looked at Luna, "you must not realize how hard it is… being only half of someone, I mean. Breaking free of the bonds created by the Elements of Harmony was hard." He stopped and looked sideways at Luna. "Then again, perhaps you _do _know how hard it is to be a half of someone. After all, you're in that very same predicament now."

"What dost thou mean?" Luna asked, turning away from the exquisitely-crafted silver chandelier she was looking at.

"Well, perhaps I should give you a little background," Eclipse said, stepping down from the throne.

"Spare me," said Luna, "thou already explained thine story."

"Then you must understand why neither of us is complete, then," said Eclipse. "As long as the other exists as a separate entity, neither of us will be whole."

"Dost thou mean that we are both mere shadows of ourselves?" Luna asked, suddenly worried.

"Yes," Eclipse said, nodding, "and that is why I've brought you here."

"To join us together," Luna confirmed.

"Yes."

"Well, I shalt have no part of this plan!" Luna said.

Eclipse walked her towards a nearby door and opened it. "Of course you won't, knowing me as I am right now, but give me some time before you truly decide."

Luna couldn't tell, but Eclipse's horn was glowing faintly, just faintly enough to indicate that he was mustering some magic. She didn't know yet, but her failure to realize this would be her most costly mistake yet.

…

"Right," said Rainbow Dash, as she, her friends, Nimbus, and Mecha walked out of the Canterlot location of "Mecha's Metalworks," "now we need to split up if we want to get going. I'll go with the rest of the mares," she said.

"Okay," said Nimbus, "and I'll stop by my rented room. I have a few things I need to pick up."

"We'll meet back at the gates to the palace in an hour," Twilight said, "and let's try to hurry. We can't afford to waste much time."

"Okay," said Nimbus, "see you in an hour, then." He and Mecha walked down the road, Nimbus leading this time.

"Hey," Nimbus said, turning to Mecha, "sorry about how I acted back there."

Mecha shrugged, brushing it off. "It's no big deal, really. You just need to think about what you say before you say it. Ponies who've just joined the military tend to be a bit highly strung," he said, the quickly added, "not that it's a bad thing, but you'll learn to calm down and relax now and then. Trust me when I say you'll be better off learning early." He glanced down at the helmet still dangling at Nimbus's side.

"Why are you carrying that?" he asked.

"Believe me," Nimbus said, "I would have put it down a long time ago, but-" he picked up the helmet by the strap and showed Mecha his amphibious hitchhikers, "I've kind of got company."

"Frogs?" Mecha inquired, "with cutie marks?"

"Not exactly," said Nimbus, "they're the rest of my security detail. Eclipse did this to them."

"Hm," said Mecha, "I don't know any way to cure them for now, but I do know a way to keep them safe while we're gone."

"Oh?"

"Yeah," Mecha said, "let's stop by the school on the way out of town."

"Fair enough," said Nimbus, turning and walking up the steps to a small Bed and Breakfast. "Here we are." He opened the door for Mecha, and the two walked in. Nimbus headed upstairs with Mecha following, and unlocked a door at the top. Inside was his room, which contained a perfectly-made bed, as well as a few military journals and a chest.

Mecha looked at the bed with a raised eyebrow. "Not half bad," he said, "those hospital corners are excellent!"

"Thanks," said Nimbus, "I've been doing that since I left the Academy. It seems like the polite thing to do. One less task for the room cleaners."

Mecha nodded, "well, that's certainly commendable." He looked over at Nimbus, who had just opened the chest and was now digging through its contents. "Watcha got in there?"

"Oh, not much," Nimbus confided, "just my gear, mostly- there we go!" He pulled about what appeared to be two streamlined sheathes with two leather straps on each, and began fastening them to his front legs. Mecha was intrigued.

"What exactly are those?" he asked. "I'm kind of amazed to say I've never seen anything like them before."

"Well, I can show you," said Nimbus, "but I'd ask that you stand back."

Mecha complied, stepping to the corner of the room. Nimbus nodded, then reared up on his back legs, raising his front ones in the air. He flexed them inwards slightly, and before Mecha could so much as blink, a shiny, sharp blade slid out of each sheath, making a sort of "_shing_" noise.

"Impressive," Mecha said, as Nimbus pressed the blades back into the sheathes by setting his hooves back on the ground, "do you mind if I give it a look?"

"Sure," said Nimbus, handing him a sheath. Mecha took it, studied it for a moment, found the pressure point, and pressed it, extending the blade again.

"An effective air-to-air weapon," he mused, "concealed and streamlined, but sharp and light enough to cause damage in flight." He looked to Nimbus. "I do see one flaw, though."

"What's that?" Nimbus asked. Mecha motioned for him to come closer and examine the blade. When Nimbus was close enough, Mecha indicated a few small pockmarks on the blade's tip.

"These," he said, "are from your sheathing methods. There's no way to retract the blades."

"Can that be helped?" Nimbus asked.

"Actually," said Mecha, "it can. If you'd let me tinker with one of these on the road, I could probably improve it."

"Well, thanks!" said Nimbus, "I'll pay you for it, too."

Mecha shook his head. "Not necessary. If it's for the military, I'll do it for free."

"Well… thanks again," Nimbus said, in awe.

"Is that all you need?" Mecha asked, throwing the sheath into a bag.

"Yep, that about takes care of it," said Nimbus.

"Great, then let's get moving."

On the way out, Nimbus threw down a few more bits to cover the room's payment for the next few nights. He had a feeling that he'd be gone for quite a while.

…

"Come on, Twilight!" Pinkie Pie said, bouncing around Twilight's room, "it's time to go on an adventure!"

"I'm going as fast as I can," Twilight Sparkle responded, packing a select few necessities into her bag, "I just have to finish packing!" She reached into the wardrobe containing her belongings and pulled out a jeweled box. _"Whoa," _she thought, _"how did I forget that?"_

"Spike!" she called. Her dragon companion waddled out of the bathroom. "Yes, Twilight?"

"Spike, I need you to keep the Elements of Harmony safe while I'm gone!" Twilight said, shoving the box into Spike's hands.

"Okay," Spike said, "but-"

"Also," she said, dumping a handful of bits on top of the box, "I need you to pay for this room for a few more nights." She thought for a moment, then added a few more bits. "These are for you. Go have some fun in Canterlot while I'm away."

"Really?" Spike asked, looking at Twilight with delight, "thanks!"

"Don't mention it," Twilight countered, going back to her packing.

"How long are you going to be-"

"I don't know, Spike," Twilight said, cutting the dragon off. "I just know that those Elements need to be _really _safe for the next couple of days."

"Alright, so when-"

"No time! Bye Spike!" Twilight said, patting the little dragon on the head and walking out the door. Pinkie Pie bounced out after her, leaving Spike utterly confused.

At the building's entrance, the rest of Twilight's friends were waiting.

"Ready?" Rainbow Dash asked, flapping her wings and lifting off the ground.

"Ready as I'll ever-" Twilight froze, looking at Rarity. The pony was wearing a large, shiny, gold necklace.

"You're bringing _that?" _she asked, disbelieving.

"But of course, darling," Rarity crowed, "isn't it simply _marvelous?"_

"Not for this!" Twilight said. "Suppose we have to hide. You'll give us away! Remember what happened when you wore that festive dress when we were watching the Great Dragon Migration?"

Rarity blushed. "Oh, well I suppose-"

"Just put it inside with my things for now," Twilight said.

Rarity walked in, and inside, Twilight could hear crashing noises, followed by mumbled swears. Finally, Rarity trotted back out, bruised and battered, but satisfied. "Done," she beamed. Twilight was about to ask where she'd stored the necklace, but thought better of it.

"Well," she said, "if that's everything, then let's get on over to the palace."

…

Nimbus and Mecha stopped in front of the Canterlot schoolhouse.

"My daughter's class is on a field trip here," Mecha explained. "They all got tickets to the Gala for their service to the Ponyville community. Too bad the darn thing got canceled because of Eclipse."

"Yeah," Nimbus said.

"Come on," said Mecha, "let's go find my daughter."

He led Nimbus into the little one-room schoolhouse and was instantly engulfed in a sea of little fillies and colts. The place was certainly packed. Cherilee, the teacher, was up on the blackboard, writing something about the Grand Galloping Gala's history when Mecha and Nimbus walked in.

"Mecha!" she said, "so pleased to see you! How's my favorite cripple?" she teased.

Mecha grinned. "Just fine," he said. "Can I see my daughter for a second?"

"Of course," Cherilee said, "Sugary Spice?"

A little orange pony stood up and ran over to Mecha. "Hey, dad!" she practically squealed with delight.

"Hey there, Sugary Spice!" Mecha said, giving her mane a friendly rub, "I'd like to talk to you, if that's okay."

"Sure, Dad!" Sugary Spice said, leading Mecha and Nimbus out.

"Now Sugary," Mecha said, after the schoolroom door was closed, "how'd you like to take care of a few…" he looked to Nimbus for a word.

"_Pets," _Nimbus mouthed.

"Er, take care of a few _pets_ while I'm gone for a couple of days?"

"Pets?" Sugary Spice asked in excitement. In response, Nimbus held his helmet out in front of her so she could see the frogs inside.

"Wow, cool! Frogs!"

Nimbus winced on the word "frogs." He still knew them as his comrades, and referring to them as pets was just plain weird.

"That's right," said Mecha. He pointed to Nimbus. "This is Nimbus, a friend of mine, and these are his frogs. I want you to take good care of them, and _don't _let them near the explosives!"

"We're gonna be staying in the Canterlot shop for a little while longer, then?" she asked.

"Yeah," said Mecha, "but we'll get back to Ponyville when I return."

"Cool!" said Sugary Spice.

"By the way," Mecha added, "where's Wolfgang? I thought you were taking him to class today."

"He's around here somewhere," Sugary Spice said. Suddenly, Nimbus was thrown to the ground by an unseen force. Pinned on his back, he whipped out the sheath he'd kept and extended the blade… then stopped. On top of him was a young Timberwolf cub.

"And there's Wolfgang," Mecha said to Nimbus, "it seems he likes you."

The wolf licked Nimbus's face, causing the Pegasus to laugh. "That's fine by me," he said, "you've got a great pet here!"

The dog's eyes suddenly narrowed, and he slunk off of Nimbus.

"What?" the pony asked, "was it something I said?"

"By Fenrir's grizzled chin, of course it was something you said!" the dog spoke.

Nimbus froze. "Did you just-"

"Yes, I just talked. How many ponies do I have to explain this to?"

"Take it easy," Nimbus said, retracting his blade, "I meant no insult."

"Wolfgang," Mecha said, and the wolf turned to acknowledge him, "watch over Sugary Spice and the shop, will you? I'll be gone for a little while."

The wolf nodded. "It's as good as done!" He then took off in the direction of the shop. Mecha chuckled.

"Alright then, Sugary Spice, let's get you back to class."

He opened the door and escorted the little Earth Pony back to her seat. He then proceeded to Cherilee at the front of the classroom.

"Hey, Cherilee," he said, "I'm going to be gone for a few days. Think you can help out Sugary Spice if she ever needs somepony?"

"I sure will," said Cherilee, giving Mecha a quick kiss on the cheek and eliciting an "aww" from the class.

"Thanks," Mecha said, walking out, "you're the best." Nimbus started following him when the purplish-pink pony spoke.

"Oh, and Mecha-"

The black pony turned around, as did Nimbus.

"I didn't know you had a friend in the EDF. Perhaps you both can come to class next week in Ponyville to tell everyone how your respective branches work together!"

"That'd be great!" Mecha said.

"Er…" was all Nimbus could say.

"Next Thursday should do," said Mecha.

"Alright, see you then!" said Cherilee, as Mecha dragged a very shell-shocked Nimbus out the door.

…

It wasn't long before Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy spotted Nimbus and Mecha walking up the road to the palace gate.

"You ready?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Sure am," Nimbus replied.

"Good," said Twilight. "I understand we're going to your family's home first," she said to Nimbus.

"Correct," Nimbus said, "but we can't go by conventional means: no flying, walking, or magic."

"Then how are we supposed ta get there?" asked Applejack.

Nimbus grinned, almost wickedly. "By boat."

…

Eclipse led Luna into a dimly-lit corridor. At the end of it was something huge and green, catching whatever light was in the room. Luna squinted at it. It appeared to be some kind of gem.

"This," said Eclipse, taking Luna into the corridor, "is why I returned."

"What is that strange object?" Luna inquired.

"That, my dear princess, is the answer to all of Equestria's problems. It is an artifact, older than the Elements of Harmony. It is… a kind of focus for the Elements, taking their power and purifying it, so to speak. When I was dormant, trapped by the Elements, I gained knowledge of this wonder. It wasn't hard. As a tree trunk has rings, which can allow one to see its history, so too could I see the history of the Elements of Harmony I knew something much more powerful had created them. It took much searching, but I finally found the creator here, locked away in this castle. It stands before you now. If one could tap into this power, Equestria could be freed of all evil, forever. You see, Luna, I've changed. I've strove to become more like you, like the personality I was always jealous of. There is only one thing which prevents me from using this power. You see, I cannot wield it in this form, incomplete as I am. I am too weak. I need you to join your spirit with mine once more, and we can save Equestria."

Luna didn't say anything. Instead, she moved closer to the gem. It was, in fact, green, with a hexagonal shape, and gold trim bordering it. There were also three symbols on the gem: a horn, a feather, and a hoof. Three gold handles also protruded from its side. Luna exhaled, seeing her breath in the cold air. Her friend, Mecha, had theorized about this artifact's existence, and now she was standing right in front of it!

She turned around, and Eclipse was standing right behind her, eyes and horn glowing. Immediately, she felt at peace. Eclipse, it now seemed was her friend beyond any doubt.

"Now, my darling sister, what is your answer? Will you allow yourself to be joined into my being so that I may be made whole and able to wield this powerful artifact?"

"Of course, brother," Luna said, her eyes now glowing a bright blue, like Eclipse's. "I would do anything for you."

Eclipse smirked. Mind controlling someone like Luna was difficult, but not impossible. She had a strong will, but given even a sliver of doubt, even the strongest mental defenses couldn't stand an expert mind-controller's influence.

"Then let the ritual begin," he said, laughing.


	7. Chapter 7: The Finer Points of Sailing

_Chapter 7: The Finer Points of Sailing_

The Canterlot docks were alive with the smell of fresh water and fish, and the sounds of the Great Equestrian River's flow, boats coming in and out, and of course, swearing sailor ponies were everywhere. On top of it all, Pinkie Pie was bouncing along excitedly.

"Oh, goody! Boats!" she cried, bouncing over to a party barge festooned with bright ribbons, a lounge, and balloons. "Can we take this one?"

"No, Pinkie," said Twilight, "that's not our boat."

"Aww," Pinkie said, hanging her head. Her misery was short-lived, however.

"Well… what about this one?" She had now bounced right over to a yacht. On deck was a small tennis court. Twilight smacked herself in the head with her hoof. Ignoring Pinkie, she turned to Fluttershy. The yellow and pink Pegasus was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane.

"What's wrong, Fluttershy?" she asked.

"T-t-too much noise!" she whispered.

"Oh, I see."

"Aw, take it like a Pegasus," Rainbow Dash said, swooping down next to her and landing gracefully on the dock.

"_Rainbow,_" Twilight hissed.

"Sorry," said Rainbow Dash, "I just don't think there's really any reason to be scared here."

"Well, Fluttershy might think differently," Twilight said, "right, Flutter-?"

She stopped. Fluttershy was no longer next to her. She turned around and saw the Pegasus staring at something, petrified, shaking uncontrollably, and biting her hooves.

"Fluttershy?" she asked, "what is it?" Then she followed Fluttershy's gaze. She was staring at a pony who'd just caught a large fish off the dock. When she turned back to her friend, Fluttershy had a certain glint in her eye; a glint Twilight knew all too well.

"Oh no," she breathed. Fluttershy drew in a big intake of breath and suddenly just about exploded at the fisherpony.

"_What in Equestria is the matter with you? Did that fish ever do anything to you? Put it back where it came from right __**now!**__"_

Startled, the pony complied, dropping the fish back in the water.

"Thank you," Fluttershy whispered. Nimbus just stared back at the commotion, openmouthed. He'd been talking with the dock attendant, arranging a boat rental. When Fluttershy exploded, Nimbus doubted even something as legendary as a sonic rainboom could have gotten his attention faster. He finished signing the release papers for his boat and walked back with Mecha to the rest of the ponies.

"What was that all about?" he asked no one in particular.

"Just a little fishing trouble, is all," Applejack said, "it's all taken care of."

"Well alright then," said Nimbus, not entirely convinced. "Anyway, I just got a boat. Let's go check it out. It's at dock D-4."

"Great!" said Twilight.

"I hope it's fast," Rainbow Dash added. Nimbus simply shrugged.

"I don't know _what _it's going to be like. I just got the best one for the money."

"Good call," said Mecha.

"_I _just hope it won't be too… unsightly," Rarity said, "no offense, Nimbus."

"None taken," Nimbus replied, finding the dock. Tied to it was… not what anypony was expecting, to be sure.

"We're going in _this?" _Rarity said, obviously appaled, "this doesn't blend with my style in the least!"

"That doesn't look fast at all!" Rainbow Dash said.

"And it's got _holes_ in it," Applejack exclaimed.

"Couldn't be helped," Nimbus said, "that's all the money I've got right now."

Tied to the dock was what had obviously once been a proud sailboat. Its paint was flaking everywhere, and the hull- whatever parts of it weren't composed of rotting wood- was rusting quite miserably. There was still a sail- or at least part of one. A stump about as tall as Nimbus stood from the center of the deck. Gingerly, Twilight placed a hoof inside the very-nearly derelict vessel.

"Well," she said, stepping in all the way, "at least it's seaworthy."

The others stepped in, following her example.

"Are those… tooth-marks?" Fluttershy asked, indicating a row of perfectly-spaced indentations in the roof of the boat's small, enclosed navigation room.

"Could be," Mecha said, "in fact, it looks almost like those of a-"

"Don't tell me," Fluttershy said, "I'd rather not know." Mecha shrugged and took a seat as Nimbus untied the boat's line.

"So where to?" Rainbow Dash asked, taking the wheel without really asking if anyone else wanted it.

"Upriver," Nimbus responded. Rainbow looked at him like he was crazy.

"What?" Nimbus asked.

"You did say _upriver, _right?"

Nimbus nodded.

"And you do realize that this boat couldn't even do that when it _had _a sail, right?"

Nimbus was in shock, trying to understand his blunder. Finally, he facehoofed himself. "You're right," he said, kicking the boat's side. "I'll just get off and-" he stopped as he realized that the boat was now drifting downriver. They still had the tie-down rope, but the dock was too far away.

"Dang," was all Nimbus could say.

"Good job, smarty-hooves," Rainbow Dash said. Nimbus couldn't help notice that her tone was more playful than sarcastic this time, however. Perhaps she was starting to get used to his presence.

"Well," said Twilight slowly, "I have a plan that might work…"

…

"You know this is ridiculous, right?" Rainbow Dash asked as Twilight tied the tie-down rope around her midsection.

"That it may be, but this is the only plan we've got that works. None of us can pull and swim, but you can pull and fly. Besides, we'll swap you out with Nimbus and Fluttershy during the trip."

"Brilliant," Rainbow Dash moaned.

The boat had run aground about thirty feet from the dock, and Mecha had volunteered to run back to the dock's small restaurant and pick up sandwiches for dinner. Now he was returning.

"So _this _is your plan," he said to Twilight, pointing to Rainbow Dash, "I like it!"

"Well, we'll see how it works," Twilight said as Mecha got back into the boat, "have you seen Pinkie?"

Mecha shook his head.

"Here I am!" Pinkie Pie shouted, jumping into the boat from the shore and nearly flipping it.

"Okay, that's everypony," Twilight said. "Ready, Rainbow?"

"Ready," Rainbow Dash confirmed, pawing the deck.

"Okay, then. Three, two, one, go!"

Rainbow Dash took off like a streak of lightning. Twilight braced herself for sudden acceleration. Instead, what she got was a sickening "crack" as Rainbow's takeoff ripped the rest of the mast clear of the boat. When Rainbow realized she was no longer pulling anything, she turned around and came back.

"Perhaps a slower start next time," Twilight said, looking forlornly at the hole where the mast used to be.

…

"Yes," Eclipse murmured, "yes. This is what I've waited for so long to finally achieve."

He was kneeling over the still figure of Luna, encircling her with his wings. Slowly, a green light was pulsing out of her horn and into Eclipse's wings; her consciousness. In a manner of moments, the Alicorn in front of Eclipse would be nothing more than a shell. Every second the energy pulsed through his system, Eclipse felt better- more complete.

"_So this is what it's like to be whole,"_ he thought, _"I haven't felt like this since-"_

He stopped. He dared not mention the name of Nightmare Moon. That… _thing _had been primarily Luna's creation, born of jealousy. He supposed he had Nightmare Moon to thank for his existence, but that was the extent of his admiration. He was something new; the child of Nightmare Moon's hatred and ambition; a being becoming more powerful every second. If Nightmare Moon had been able to make Equestria bow before her, what could he, unrestrained by any sliver of compassion do? He chuckled to himself. Luna had been so susceptible…

He gazed up at the great, green gem above him. Soon, he would be able to wield its power- whatever its power _was, _and when he could, no force in Equestria, not even the Elements of Harmony, would be able to resist him.

He looked back down at the Princess of the Night below him. She was pale, not breathing. One could easily believe she was dead, but a true master of magic would know instantly that her consciousness had simply been absorbed. He brushed the matter aside, however. No one would be able to reach Skywatch Tower, and even if somepony did, he'd be powerful enough to deal with the threat himself. Only a little longer to go…

…

"Alright," said Twilight Sparkle to Rainbow Dash, "so what did we learn?"

"Not… to just take off like it's a race," Rainbow responded, somewhat halfheartedly.

"That's right," Twilight said, refastening the rope to both Rainbow Dash and the boat's bow, "now let's try this again, shall we?"

By now, the sun was going down. It had been a long day, with a lot of work crammed into a short time. Hopefully, they could all relax on the boat tonight. Slowly, Rainbow Dash started hovering above the deck. When she felt she was high enough, she began to move forward slowly, pulling the boat with her. Cheers erupted from the docks.

"I was unaware we had spectators," Nimbus mused.

Mecha nodded. "Yeah, well finally launching this boat _is _quite an accomplishment."

As they began to pull out under Pegasus power, Nimbus suddenly heard the roaring of a motor. He looked behind the boat and saw a sleek yacht approaching. Its decks were packed with ponies, and they appeared to be following the boat.

"Can anypony tell me what _they're _doing here?" Nimbus asked, pointing with a hoof towards the yacht.

Pinkie Pie took a glance back excitedly. "Oh boy! They're here!"

"Who's here?" Applejack asked, confused.

"The documentary crew!" Pinkie replied, jumping up and down and rocking the boat.

"The who?" Mecha asked.

"Not _who, documentary crew_!" Pinkie replied.

"A documentary? We're being filmed?" Rarity almost shrieked, "but I barely combed my mane this morning, and my hooves- I'm so underdressed."

Apparently Rainbow Dash had caught word of the crew as well, because she'd picked up speed, showing off for the cameras. The crew practically ate the performance up. Twilight, meanwhile, had to wrap herself around the rope and mast-stump to keep both from falling apart.

"Pinkie!" Nimbus called over the waves now spraying over the deck, "can't you make them go away!"

"Oh, well of course!" Pinkie replied. Signaling Rainbow to stop, she hopped up onto the back of the boat.

"Hey guys," she called to the camera crew, "it's too late to film now. See you tomorrow!"

"_Tomorrow?" _Nimbus thought, now thoroughly losing control.

"How was that?" Pinkie asked, hopping back into the boat. Nimbus simply collapsed.


	8. Chapter 8: Family Reunion

_Chapter 8: Family Reunion_

In all honesty, Nimbus couldn't think of a worse way to wake up. Granted, opening one's eyes three feet below the surface of the Great Equestrian River probably wasn't exactly _anyone's _idea of a good wakeup, but still…

Nimbus opened his eyes and was promptly greeted by a fish.

"_Odd," _he thought, not fully realizing that he was drowning, _"why is there-?"_ Then he sucked in a mouthful of water. Now he was fully aware of where he was, and was, needless to say, a bit displeased. He scooted for the surface, using his wings as extra propulsion. Only moments ago, it seemed, he'd been in the boat. What was going on? He was about to reach the surface of the water, when something grabbed him by the midsection and lifted him bodily out of the water, flinging him onto the deck of his boat. Nimbus coughed and gasped as his vision returned to normal he soon noticed that the sun was apparently up again. Perhaps he'd slept.

"Well, at least he's still breathing," he heard a familiar voice say. _"Mecha," _he realized.

As he looked around the boat, he could see the group of ponies staring at him. Near the navigation room, Twilight Sparkle was grilling Rainbow Dash.

"-and that's exactly why you need to watch your speed!" Twilight practically yelled.

Rainbow Dash shrugged. "Nimbus looks okay to me."

"He might be," said Twilight, "but the boat isn't!"

Nimbus stood groggily out, spitting out a good deal of river water.

"What happened?" he asked.

Twilight turned to him. "Our dear friend Rainbow Dash decided to showboat a little bit," she said, then added "no pun intended. Long story short, she went too fast and stuck us on this rock."

Twilight indicated a large rock which was currently poking through the bottom of the vessel.

"Mecha's trying to figure out how to fix the leak right now," Twilight added, "but anyway, the impact knocked you out of the boat."

"Was I asleep?" Nimbus asked.

"Yes you were," Rainbow Dash said, alighting next to him, "all night, in fact. Way to pay attention."

"Now Rainbow Dash," said Rarity, "everyone needs their beauty sleep, right Nimbus?"

Nimbus turned around and very nearly lost last night's dinner over the side of the boat before turning back to Rarity.

"Sure," he said.

"I swear," said Applejack, "If we could fix boats with the way all y'all are carryin' on, we'd be sailin' right now!"

"I'm sorry," said Nimbus, "you're right." He turned to Mecha. "Anything you need?"

Mecha squinted at the damage for a moment, then turned to Nimbus. "As a matter of fact, yes. I need you and another Pegasus to fly out of here and go collect some wood."

"Done," Nimbus said, looking at both Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, "now who do I take with me?"

Rainbow crossed her arms and turned away. Nimbus looked at Fluttershy.

"P- p- please, I'd rather not go out there," she said, shaking and pointing out of the boat. Nimbus looked. Trees were growing on both sides of the river, and the forest was deep and dark. He could definitely see Fluttershy's cause for concern.

"Alright," he said, turning to Rainbow Dash, "what about you?"

"Fine," she sighed, "but you can't be a slowpoke."

Nimbus groaned. "Whatever. I wasn't planning on flying _over _the trees, anyway."

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. "Wait, what? Then how are you-?'

"We're going _through_ them," Nimbus said with a wink.

Rainbow Dash gulped. For someone who felt she could master the skies, the task at hand suddenly seemed rather daunting.

"Okay, let's go!" Nimbus shouted, propelling himself off the deck. Rainbow Dash followed. Nimbus rocketed into the trees at the riverside, and began to weave in and out of the trees, rolling, banking, and practically hugging the ground. He had just entered a clearing when Rainbow Dash overtook him, rocking Nimbus with displaced air.

"Hey, wait!" Nimbus called, "watch out for that-!"

Rainbow Dash impacted a rather large Zapapple tree, and Nimbus couldn't help but wince at the hit. Rainbow Dash hit with enough force for the tree to deliver maximum shocking power. Rainbow never stood a chance. She was catapulted through the air, and landed at Nimbus's feet as he stopped.

"That… was not supposed to happen," Rainbow said as her eyes began to stop spinning.

Nimbus sighed, "out here, flying low like this, it's not all about speed."

"Oh yeah? And what made _you _such an expert, huh?"

Nimbus shrugged, "that's the way I always practiced. See, the land where I grew up is a lot like this. I had a lot of time to practice flying low-level. Avoiding obstacles is one of the first things I learned. That's how I got my first cutie mark, in fact," Nimbus explained, showing off the feather on his flank. "The lightning bolt came after I joined the EDF."

"Uh huh," Rainbow Dash said, "but you're still pretty darn slow."

Nimbus put a hoof to his chin, deep in thought. "You know, perhaps we could strike a deal here."

Rainbow's eyebrow went up. "What kind of deal?"

"Simple," said Nimbus, trotting in a circle around Rainbow Dash, "you teach me to fly fast, and I'll teach you how to maneuver."

Rainbow Dash smiled involuntarily- then caught herself. Best not to show any excitement yet. "Hmm," she said, "perhaps…" She crossed her arms. Nimbus waited, staring her straight in the eyes. "Okay, fine!"

"Then we have a deal," said Nimbus, "so which do we learn first?"

"Speed, without a doubt," said Rainbow Dash, "or our friends are going to sink before we get there."

…

"Why?" Eclipse groaned, "_why won't you work?!"_

He threw the large green gem down in frustration. He'd long since absorbed Luna's essence, but he'd had no success in learning how to use the Unifier. He felt more alive than he ever had, perhaps even more than when he'd been Nightmare Moon. It seemed Luna's power had increased since then- perhaps this new concept of friendship. He growled. He'd have to get rid of _that _particular idea as soon as possible.

Using his magic, he picked up the Unifier once more. Touching it with his magic seemed to do _something. _He felt more powerful when he had contact with it. It took him a moment before he realized what was happening.

"I'm absorbing its energy," he realized aloud, "as long as I have contact with it." He looked around, then grinned as he looked back at the hole in the wall where the Unifier had once stood proudly.

"So _that's_ what this is for," he said, removing a gold chain from the socket. The chain had a link on it, which appeared to attach to the Unifier. "At last," he whispered, "I have the key to power. I will bide my time as I grow stronger, but as long as this is near me, I shall always gain from it." He fastened the Unifier to the chain, then placed it around his neck. He moved up to the throne room and glanced out the massive window in the direction of Canterlot. Soon, the regal kingdom would fall, and with it, Equestria. Adding Luna's power to his own had made him strong- stronger, he believed, than Princess Celestia herself. Still, best not to take chances. He'd attack when he _knew _he'd have the upper hoof.

A single, solitary spark traveled up the chain, and disappeared into his mane, sending a shiver down his spine. It wouldn't be long, now. Soon, he'd be powerful enough to make his move, and when that happened, nopony would be able to stop him.

…

Nimbus landed back on the boat a few seconds after Rainbow Dash touched down. He was completely exhausted. As he dropped his load, he took one look at Rainbow Dash, smiled, and collapsed to the deck.

"Yeah, your speed's not bad. I suppose you learn pretty quick, but you still need some work."

She turned to Mecha, "this enough wood?' Mecha glanced at the pile of lumber in front of him.

"Eeyup," he said, "that'll do. I'll get to work right away. Twilight-"

The purple Unicorn looked up.

"Do you think you can lift this boat in the air for a few seconds?"

"I'll give it a try," Twilight answered, her horn glowing and encircling the boat with a reddish-purple light. Slowly, the craft rose off the rock and into the air. Mecha immediately went to work, and within seconds, patched the hole. Nimbus was impressed. He'd never seen anypony work so fast before. When the boat settled, it was as good as new. Perhaps better, Nimbus realized, remembering the condition in which he'd received it.

He turned to Rainbow Dash. "Want a break?" he asked. "I could pull for a while."

Rainbow Dash was about to object, when Twilight cut in. "I think you'd better. You've been at this since we started."

Rainbow Dash grumbled, took two steps, then collapsed to the deck, asleep.

"Well, I told her," Twilight said, heading back to the navigation room. Nimbus took the rope and fastened it to himself.

"Hey," he called to Twilight, who was now at the wheel, "I think we're close now. I'll let you know when we get there."

"Great!" Twilight said. The others settled back, and Nimbus was off, pulling the boat along. Something troubled him, however- he knew there was _something _that stood between him and his home, but for the life of him, he couldn't remember what it was. He hoped to Celestia that it wasn't something dangerous.

…

The sun was already going down when Nimbus finally saw the first indicator of home.

"Private Property," he said, reading the sign with ominous red wording on it by the riverside, "yep, we're close now."

Twilight stuck her head out of the navigation room. "Private Property?" she asked Nimbus, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't worry about it," said Nimbus, "we're not far."

Twilight shook her head and went back to steering. Nimbus turned back to the river and continued on. Suddenly, something shook the boat below. Fluttershy's eyes went wide, and she fell over, fainting.

"What in Equestria was that?" Applejack asked.

"It's probably just a log," Nimbus explained, though he wasn't convinced. They traveled farther, when the bump happened again.

"Really, Nimbus," Rarity said, peering over the boat's side, "do try to be more careful."

"But I _am _being careful," Nimbus said, "I've been-"

He was interrupted by a sudden scream from Rarity.

"What is it?" Twilight asked, poking her head out again.

"There's something down there!" Rarity said, biting her hooves. Mecha looked where Rarity had indicated.

"I don't see anything," he said.

"But there was an _eye!" _Rarity insisted, " a huge eye!"

Mecha looked up suddenly. "An eye, you say?"

"Yes."

"Luna preserve us," he whispered, "then it fits."

"What fits?" Applejack asked, stepping over the sleeping Rainbow Dash and unconscious Fluttershy to get to Mecha.

"Well, this is the same stalking pattern used by most River Serpents," Mecha explained.

"Ooh, what's a River Serpent?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"Think of a Sea Serpent," Mecha said, "but meaner, and more dangerous."

"Oh, goody!" Pinkie said, then realized what Mecha had just told her. "Oh, wait- that's not good at all."

"Right you are," said Mecha. " The best thing we can do is keep away from the sides of the boat."

"No need to twist my leg to get me to do that," said Applejack, getting as far away from the sides as she could. From above, Nimbus suddenly turned around. "See that bend in the river ahead?" he called out, "my family lives right around it! We're almost there!"

Rarity breathed a sigh of relief. A tad premature, it seemed, because at that instant, the water in front of the boat exploded upwards. Nimbus was almost hit by a large, muscular, serpentine body that sprang up from the river's depths. When the water finally settled, he saw what was really in front of him. He was, in fact, staring down a massive River Serpent.

"So _that's _what I forgot about," he said, trying not to look too scared.

"What is that?" Twilight asked.

"It's our protection," he said," from intruders."

"So your family keeps a _River Serpent_ practically in their front yard?" Rarity asked, somewhat appalled.

"I need to look into that," Mecha mumbled.

"In answer to your question," Nimbus said to Rarity, "yes." He looked back at the Serpent, who was still glaring at him, "and I think I've forgotten the password."

"Well, this is just great," said Pinkie, glaring up at the beast, "doesn't he remember you?"

"Well yeah," said Nimbus, "but for all he knows, I could be a Changeling."

"Good point," said Pinkie. At that moment, Rainbow Dash woke up.

"Hey," she said groggily, "what's all the commotion about?" Then she saw the Serpent.

"Hang on, guys!" she said, launching herself at the creature, "I've got this!"

"Wait!" Nimbus said, "that's not a good-" Rainbow Dash smacked the creature in the face, "-idea."

The Serpent glared, then went back underwater.

"See?" said Rainbow Dash, "he wouldn't dare mess with me."

"I don't think that's it," said Mec ha. "I hope you guys can swim."

"Why would you ask that?" Twilight said, coming on deck, then she came to the same conclusion that Mecha had come to.

"Oh."

She barely got the word out when the boat splintered as the Serpent broke through the deck, scattering ponies everywhere. Nimbus looked down at the devastation. Fluttershy was amazingly still out cold, safe on a piece of driftwood, but everyone else was trying to stay afloat. He racked his brain, trying to remember what to say to the Serpent, but the words wouldn't come to him. The Serpent rose up from the water again, jaws wide. This wasn't going to be a simple scare attack this time. Now the creature was going for the kill. Nimbus was about to say something, anything, when Fluttershy came to.

"Oh my," she said, seeing the Serpent about to make a meal out of Nimbus, "excuse me, Mr. River Serpent," she whispered. The creature turned from Nimbus to her, and fixated his large, yellow eyes on her.

"Why are you hurting my friends?" she asked, appalled, "you should really know better."

"But this is my job!" the Serpent said, hissing, "I have to defend my keepers!"

"But that orange Pegasus is one of your keepers!" Fluttershy said. The Serpent looked bac k at Nimbus, then back to Fluttershy.

"Then why doesn't he know the passphrase?"

"I've been away for a while," Nimbus explained. The Serpent glared at him.

"It's the truth," Fluttershy said. The Serpent settled down to Fluttershy's eye level and spoke again.

"Very well, you may pass, but I'll have my eyes on you."

"Pass?" Rainbow Dash asked, dragging herself onto the river bank, evidently awake now, "well how are we supposed to do that without a boat?"

"You won't have to," a voice said behind her. Rainbow Dash whipped around. Emerging from the trees were two Pegasi. Their cutie marks were those of a storm cloud and a tornado, each with a lightning bolt through them.

"I trust it is us you seek?" The first of the Pegasi spoke. He was blue, with a black mane, and he bore the tornado cutie mark.

"Well yes," said Twilight, "are you Nimbus's-"

"Nimbus!" the other pony, yellow, with a black mane said, "you're home!"

Nimbus settled on the ground in front of the ponies. "Sure am," he said. "Hi mom, hi dad." 


	9. Chapter 9: Welcome Home

_Chapter 9: Welcome Home_

As the others made it to shore, Nimbus introduced the ponies to his parents. They were both very polite, but Nimbus could tell they seemed uneasy about having visitors. Finally, Nimbus's suspicions were confirmed when his father walked up to him.

"So what brings you and your friends here?" he asked.

"Well, Dad, did you hear about what happened in Canterlot yesterday?"

The blue pony nodded. "I did, yes. Terrible."

"Well, I was involved," said Nimbus. "I was a part of the security detail at the Wonderbolts' performance when Eclipse kidnapped Luna."

His father raised an eyebrow. "Go on."

"I joined up with the rest of the ponies here and tried to find out who Eclipse was and why he took Luna. Eventually, we came to the conclusion that Eclipse is actually a manifestation of the evil side of Nightmare Moon, separated when Luna was freed by the Elements of Harmony. He's either found or is looking for an old artifact called "The Unifier," which purifies the Elements. He can't use it while he only remains as a half of someone else, though, so he'd need Luna's consciousness to become whole again."

"So why are you here, then?" his father asked, still confused.

"I wanted to ask you guys or Grandpa if there's any information about the Unifier's whereabouts around here."

Nimbus's father scratched his chin for a moment. "There is information…" he said slowly, "but it's only accessible through a very… _special_ manner- a very dangerous manner. The information is on an old scroll we've kept over the centuries, but it's hidden, and no one but this family is to know the whereabouts. Therefore-" he glanced around at the other ponies, chatting with Nimbus's mother, "I have to insist that you go alone, with your grandfather."

Nimbus was about to say something, then stopped. His father was right- the scroll's safety couldn't be compromised.

"I understand," he said.

"Good," said his father, "then let's get you and your friends into the house for a bite to eat. You must be starving!"

Nimbus licked his lips in anticipation. He'd been hungry all morning. A meal now would be just the thing to get him going again.

…

Celestia was out on her balcony; she'd been there all day, in fact. Her sister's disappearance had left her feeling empty, and alone again. The previous night, she'd taken it upon herself to bring forth the night, as she'd done so many years ago. She was tired, and it showed. Celestia let out a sigh.

"My dear sister," she said, whispering and gazing off into the distance, "you were only here for a short while, and now I've lost you again. I know you can't hear me, but I have a message for you all the same- be strong, little sister. Whatever this 'Eclipse' does, stay true to-"

"A personal letter for you, Your Highness."

Celestia turned around to see one of her Royal Guards with a parchment case attached to his flank. She nodded, and the guard reached into the case and pulled out a scroll. Celestia dismissed him and proceeded to use her magic to unravel the parchment.

"A letter?" she said, "from Twilight Sparkle?"

Twilight must have had urgent news if she'd decided to send this letter regardless of Spike's absence. Teleportation spells were tricky, and often tiring at long distance. She proceeded to read the note aloud, intrigued.

_Dear Princess Celestia, _it began. The princess smiled, sinking into the letter's familiar format.

_My friends and I have started our journey. I don't know exactly where we're headed, or for how long we'll be gone, but I just wanted to tell you about something I've noticed recently._

_Our newcomer-Nimbus- I don't quite know what it is about him, but whenever I'm near him I feel at peace, which is kind of a big deal for stressed-out me. I don't want to say anything yet, but I'm beginning to think I like him, and not just as a friend. I tried to talk to Rainbow Dash about it, since she's the one who's known Nimbus longer than the rest of us, but she just shrugged me off. I think something's bothering her, too, and I almost wonder if Nimbus is on her mind as well, though if she does like them, she has a very odd way of showing it. Seems the two are constantly competing, although I believe Nimbus is honestly trying to change his ways. Perhaps he'll learn about humility on this journey, and if he does, perhaps he'll write to you about it. When this is all over, do you suppose I could talk to you about Nimbus and how I feel about him?_

_Your Faithful Student,_

_Twilight Sparkle_

Celestia was smiling by the end of the letter. It seemed Twilight had finally begun her quest for a significant other. She had known this day would come for a long time, and she was happy to see that today, it had finally arrived. She was just about to pick up a quill and parchment to respond to Twilight's letter, when the guard appeared again.

"Another letter Your Highness," he said, handing her a rolled-up piece of parchment tied with a velvet black bow. Celestia was curious- she'd never seen a ribbon like it before.

"Guard," she inquired, "who sent this?"

The guard shrugged. "I have no idea. It was dropped almost right into my hooves by a big, black bird.

Celestia frowned. Every shred of common sense in her body told her not to open the note, but her curiosity took over. She took the note, thanked the guard again, and walked back into her throne room. As she opened the note, she was surprised. Only a single sentence stood on the paper. Peering closer, she read it.

_Surprised to see me again?_

Celestia's heart skipped a beat. If the letter meant what she thought it meant-

"Guards!" she called. No one answered. Instead, the massive throne room doors shut. Celestia leaped off the throne and ran to them, summoning her magic in an attempt to open them, but the massive doors never budged. Then, every light in the throne room went out. Slowly, Celestia turned around to face her throne, with a bad feeling about what was coming next.

"Hello, my dear Princess Celestia, well met."

From behind the throne, two glowing blue eyes appeared. Celestia knew immediately who it was.

"Eclipse," she said, summoning her magic, "I was not expecting a visit from you today."

Eclipse chuckled. "No, I would imagine you didn't. Still, here I am." The eyes blinked once, and an eerie green light illuminated the room, emanating from what appeared to be a jewel attached to a gold chain around Eclipse's neck. Celestia felt she'd seen it before, but she couldn't place where. The dark stallion walked up to her, unafraid.

"You know I hold the power to defeat you," Celestia said, "it was foolish to come here alone."

"Oh, I doubt that," said Eclipse, staring at the Unifier. "Do you know what this is?"

"A trinket," said Celestia, lying, "nothing more."

"Oh no," Eclipse said, "this is no mere trinket. This is a strong artifact, the key to unlimited power, and don't try to deny that you know of its existence. Luna was aware of it, and she knew you were, as well."

"How do you know this?" Celestia demanded.

"Simple. Your beloved sister is a part of me now."

Celestia's eyes widened. "My sister…"

"And with that in mind, I have a proposition for you."

Celestia narrowed her eyes, tensing her back legs and lowering her head slightly. "And what might that be?"

Eclipse's eyes seemed to flash with a sudden blue fire. "I want Equestria. I was destined to rule it, but the form of Nightmare Moon was too weak to achieve the objective. I'm here to finish what I started, but I forget myself. Here is my offer: you surrender-"

Celestia sprung forward, horn bared, ready to do battle with Eclipse. The stallion simply blinked again, and Celestia was sent sailing into a nearby bookshelf, impacting hard.

"Ready to listen now?" Eclipse asked. Celestia simply growled in response.

"Good. Turn Equestria over to me, and I shall create a Utopia for its citizens. I'll bring about no harm, I will create contentment- everything you and your weak sister could never fully do."

"And what if I refuse?"

Eclipse shrugged. "Nothing really changes. Using the power of the Unifier, as Luna called it, I still get the throne, but the casualties go up." He moved up to the throne and sat. "Face it, Celestia- I'm too powerful for you. Make this easier on the citizens of Equestria and give me your authority."

Standing up slowly, looking defeated, Celestia walked over to where Eclipse was gleefully sitting.

"If it prevents bloodshed," she whispered, dipping her head and letting her crown fall to the ground, "then I relinquish my role as ruler."

Eclipse's mouth turned up in a sneer. "Good. Then my first command is that you are henceforth imprisoned!" A blue dome formed over Celestia, and she sank with it below the throne room floor. She didn't try to struggle in the least.

"Guards!" Eclipse called. The throne room doors snapped open, and the Royal Guards ran in, weapons bared. Eclipse had but to fix them with his intense blue gaze, and they dropped their arms, however.

"My subjects," said Eclipse when the guards were all gathered and brainwashed, "I have a task for you. Spread the word that Equestria has a new leader. Celestia is dead- the grief of her lost sister was too much for her, and she simply fell asleep, never to wake up again. I am her successor. Tonight, I will announce a gathering. Every pony in Equestria must be there. It is to be held tomorrow, in the Canterlot town square, and I will personally address them all as their new leader."

One of the guards, presumably the leader, knelt down. "It shall be done, Your Highness."

"Good," said Eclipse, settling back onto the throne, "just the sort of dedication I'll be expecting."

…

When the ponies were led inside Nimbus's family's house- a large, old, white-painted manor covered in vines, they were immediately treated to a delectable lunch by Nimbus's parents. Tarts, pies, and sandwiches of all sorts littered the table. Pinkie Pie was positively bursting with excitement at the variety!

"It's just like a party!" she yelled, then clapped her hands over her mouth, remembering that she was in the company of Nimbus's family, and that she wanted to make a good impression. Nimbus's mother simply smiled at her antics. She then motioned for Nimbus to follow her out of the dining room. Nimbus complied, and followed his mother down a long hallway.

"He's in there," his mother said, stopping at a room and pointing through the open door. Slowly, Nimbus walked in. Inside, a small fire was blazing, and a bed stood, neatly made. Bookshelves covered almost every wall, and on the fireplace's mantle… the stone! Nimbus walked over to it. The stone was exactly as he remembered it- shiny, smooth, and a deep green in color. He reached out to touch it…

And was instantly knocked to the floor.

"Nimbus! You're back!" Nimbus stood as he saw his assailant. He was another Pegasus, but he was a dark grey with a white mane. His cutie mark was the same as the mark on the stone Nimbus had nearly touched: the symbol of the Unifier.

"Grandpa!" Nimbus said, dusting himself off. "Seems you've still got the touch."

The old Pegasus chuckled to himself. "Well, yes, I suppose I do. What brings you here?"

"I want to know about the Unifier."

The pony froze. "How do you know about that?"

"I read about it," said Nimbus, turning back to the stone and observing it, "but now there's somepony out there with the potential to do a lot of damage to Equestria if he gets it."

"Eclipse," Nimbus's grandfather said, "yes, I heard about him. Still, this is a very closely-guarded secret."

"I know it is," said Nimbus, "but you can trust me. I'm not a little colt anymore."

The grey Pegasus chuckled. "I know, but this is a very serious undertaking. I want to make sure you can commit."

"I will," said Nimbus.

"Good. Then let's begin."

Nimbus's grandfather crossed the room and pulled a lever hidden behind a book. At once, the fireplace split in two, sliding inwards and to the sides to reveal a set of stone stairs, leading into a dark abyss.

"No one's been down there in centuries," the old Pegasus said, "in fact, I've only been down once- long ago, in my youth. I'd ask that you remain on guard at all times."

Nimbus checked his single remaining extendable blade. He suddenly realized that he should have asked Mecha for his other one back, but it was a bit late for that now.

"Why hasn't anyone been down here?" Nimbus asked.

"Well, as you know, we keep a very old scroll down there- a scroll which, until now, contained writing which spoke of something you never knew about: the Unifier."

Nimbus nodded, starting down the stairs next to his grandfather.

"When Discord was defeated by the Elements of Harmony the first time, a select few ponies, one from each race, to be exact, helped Celestia and Luna in their battle. In fact, I represented the Pegasi in that particular engagement. While the royal sisters wielded the Elements, we wielded the Unifier. I remember the day well. We had Discord trapped in a magical field, cornered atop a mountain. We were naïve then, and assumed he was defenseless as well. When the Elements were used, we tried to use the Unifier to bolster their strength. Things did not, unfortunately, go as planned. Discord struck out, and every one of us was sent flying off the mountain. By this time, Celestia and Luna were deep within the Elements' influence, and could do nothing to help. I tried to catch the others as they fell, but I couldn't reach them in time."

He hung his head and continued.

"I finally brought the Unifier back to the sisters after the battle. We knew its power couldn't fall into the wrong hands, so the sisters took me to a place they knew of. I can't recall the name, but it was a castle, built with stone as black as night, which rested on a mountain which floated high above Equestria. As it turned out, it was a stronghold, built by the Alicorns of old. They'd put a protective spell around the structure, which shielded it from the eyes of most ponies, making it the perfect hiding place. The sisters placed the Unifier inside the castle, and made one final, difficult choice: they erased the event from their memory, leaving me with the scroll detailing the Unifier's location. Our family is the Unifier's guardians. That's why so many of us have taken up arms in Equestria's defense. We simply don't want to see that power in the wrong hands. The Unifier was never used, and it shouldn't need to be used."

Nimbus nodded. "Unfortunately, if we can't stop Eclipse soon, it _will _be used."

His grandfather looked him straight in the eyes as they reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Then it seems we've got some work to do."


End file.
